Expecto Patronum!
by Daerwyn
Summary: Aquila Black didn't want to move to Privet Drive with her mother, but because of the war, the safest place was directly in the line of fire. Just a few houses down from Harry Potter's own residence, Aquila meets the family that the Boy Wizard loathes, but she tries to make them see the light in the darkness that they consider magic. The neighborhood bully caught her eye accidentaly
1. Chapter 1

It was the hottest summer on record. Aquila's mother had the fans blowing in every room of the house as she unpacked. Aquila had already finished, flicking her wand when her mother wasn't looking as she unpacked every box that was piled in her own bedroom. The wallpaper was peeling and there was water damage, but she could fix that with a coat of paint. It was her mother she couldn't fix.

The woman had raised Aquila on her own since her father was murdered, some fifteen years ago. Aquila could barely remember her father's face - dark curly hair that contrasted his gray eyes, often long and at his shoulders. It was a lot like Aquila's own hair, only hers was extremely curly from her mother's side, and sleek as she pinned it back over a shoulder. Her eyes weren't grey, though she wished they were. They were brown, like her mother's. As Aquila quietly walked down the stairs, she saw the frail woman. Her health was fine, but her emotional state was always on the bend. Aquila thought she'd get over her father's death ... Aquila certainly had, but the woman still cried over him every night.

She distracted herself, now. She always did. Aquila slipped towards the front door. "I'm going to the playground down the road... Unless you'd like some help?"

"Go ahead and make some friends," the woman insisted, waving her hand towards the outside. "No magic. We don't want to bring them here."

"I'll be fine," Aquila insisted. She paused in the doorway as she pulled it open. "Love you, Mum."

"Love you, too."

Aquila darted out into the hot sun, shutting the door firmly behind her to Number 8 Privet Drive. No one was out there in the world, it seemed. There were no clouds, blinds were shut, air conditioners buzzed. Aquila sighed and pulled her hair up into a messy bun as she smoothed down her sundress. At the end of the road was the playground that she had seen when they first arrived in this ... dull neighborhood.

"Who's Cedric? Your boyfriend?" Aquila glanced up sharply, her eyes finding three rather large boys taunting a scrawny boy on the swingset. Upon approaching, she saw that it wasn't just any scrawny boy - Harry Potter. Of course he was here, but... "Where is your mum?" The blue sky, as Aquila approached them quickly, became black as Potter shot out of his seat and pressed his wand into one of the larger boy's neck.

"No!" Aquila cried. She glanced at the sky worriedly as it churned, black clouds appearing all around. "What do you think you're doing?" She grabbed Harry's arm without thought and wrenched him back, tucking his wand into his pocket. "What are you doing?" she hissed dangerously.

"Who are you?" Harry and the large boy asked at the same time. The other two had run off when the clouds had changed and she could see their figures retreating in the distance.

"We need to run, now," Aquila whispered, glancing up at the sky once more. "Feel it?"

"It's going to rain-" the large boy said simply.

"No! You don't get it, do you, boy?" Aquila snapped. "Weather doesn't just change like that. Something or... or _someone_'s coming. Someone that will kill you. That will kill all of us." She took both of their wrists. "Let's go." And then it began to pour. She glanced wildly around. She had seen a storm tunnel on her journey here. She just needed to find it again. She let go of them once she was sure they'd be following and glanced around as she avoided looking at the sky. "Where's the storm tunnel?"

"Shouldn't we go home?"

"You don't want to lead it to your house, do you?"

"There-" Harry pointed. She saw the goosebumps on his skin as he ran past her. So he felt it too, then. He checked it before watching them both come inside. Aquila let out a breath.

"Haven't ran like that since I trained Cedric for the Tournament," she panted. She collapsed against the wall, staring at the entrance of the tunnel. "You're an idiot, Potter, you know that?"

"What are you doing here?"

"Me and my mum just moved down the road. She wanted quiet, Dumbledore suggested Little Whinging. To protect you, no doubt." Aquila glanced at the larger boy. He seemed scared out of his mind as he looked around wildly. "Who's he?"

"Cousin," Harry informed her. "I don't even know who you are."

"Aquila Black," she informed him, offering her hand. He shook it. "Sixth year this year."

"Harry Potter. Dudley Dursley." She looked to the large boy that was breathing heavily, giving her a nod. "You felt it, didn't you? The cold?"

"Happy memories, Harry," she winked, confirming she had. "I'm not in Ravenclaw for nothing." She glanced around before approaching Dudley Dursley. "You're a Muggle, aren't you?"

"A what?" he asked.

"That's a yes," she muttered. She glanced towards the tunnel entrance once more, seeing the freshly fallen water turning to ice. "Right, you see me or Potter get knocked out, you know what you do?" He shook his head and she continued. "You run to Number 8, and you tell my mother that Dementors are attacking. If you can't remember that, remember that some creature that flies that will suck your soul out or freeze you to death, okay? Number eight, flying soul sucker."

"Number eight, soul sucker. Dementor," he muttered.

She smiled. "Good, you're a smart one. I was rather hoping that." She grabbed his arm suddenly as the black figure entered the tunnel, swooping towards them. Aquila stumbled back, nearly falling into Dursley's body, but he caught her and seemed rather confused. Of course, Muggles couldn't see them.

"Potter, you know how to produce a patronus here..." she trailed off as the dementor hovered in front of her, hesitating before turning to the large boy beside her. Dementors couldn't see. This wasn't normal. They shouldn't even be here.

"I-" Dursley murmured. "I don't see anything."

"You won't," she told him. "You don't have magic. Just trust me when I say back up very slowly. Don't move quickly. They can't see you, but they can feel your fear. Just stay calm. Breathe-" She glanced to the left to see Potter knocked to the ground, reaching for his wand as another Death Eater loomed over him. "Potter," she hissed. "Hurry up."

He was concentrating on his memory, but Aquila clutched her wand tightly. She didn't know how to do the spell. She didn't know strong her memory had to be. There weren't many outstandingly happy memories in her life. The black figure surged forward suddenly, knocking her to the side as it loomed over Dudley Dursley.

"Calm, Dursley," Aquila insisted. "Breathe-"

It was too late. The figure was already drawing the fear and energy out of the boy. Two. Just two dementors, like they didn't expect to ... to have three people. That must have been why they were so confused. She focused on her memory. "Expecto Patronum." Nothing but a faint light glowed at the end of her wand before it blinked out. Merlin, come on. She tried a different memory. "Expect-"

"Expecto Patronum!" Aquila felt helpless as the large stag knocked away Harry's Dementor and then made a beeline for Dudley's. She watched as Dudley fell forward, nearly catching him before he fell face first on the ground. "Come on, before they come back."

It was still pouring as she helped Potter support Dudley Dursley's weight, sloshing in the mud, her dress sticking against her skin with each step. She should have just gone with the jeans and shirt like she had planned, but she wanted to dress summery. Now she was freezing, wet, and going to catch a cold.

"Why were you at the park today?"

"I was just looking for a day out to catch some color," she told Potter. "Maybe meet some neighbors... and then you attack your cousin, and these Dementors arrive... yeah, not exactly how my day was planned, but it could have been worse. And I did meet some neighbors."

"You said Ravenclaw, earlier."

"My house," she informed him, turning off the main street and up a driveway. "We, uh, are smart, you know? Like reading and stuff."

"And do you?"

"No way," she snorted. "I'm smart, get good grades, but I hate research. You're brave like the 'Dor you are. You've got a decent head on your shoulders, too."

"Yeah, well, I have Hermione to help with that."

"Granger probably writes your essays."

The door opened with Harry's shove and they stumbled into the dry foyer of the home that was identical to Aquila's own in design. She spotted the cupboard under the stairs where her mother had dictated as the magic closet. All things, like potion ingredients, would go in there. She noticed the stairs as well, which led up to nearly an identical lay out. Yes, all the houses must be the same, then. Her distracted thoughts left her when a heavy weight appeared on her foot. "Ow," she muttered, shooting a glare at the boy that looked a little delirious. She supposed it wasn't his fault. Muggles didn't react well to the magic. She knew that. That's why she told him to move slowly - but the Dementor seemed to be looking for him.

"Is that you- What the ruddy hell happened?" a large, beefy man cried. He must have been Potter's uncle. He and the large boy had a bit in common. "Did you do something to him-?" He froze when he saw Aquila. "Who are you?" Rude.

"Ella," Aquila winced as she was given more weight as Harry moved. "Uh, I just moved in down the road yesterday. Number 8?"

"Oh, yes, I saw the moving truck," he muttered. "Let me take him from you." The beefy man approached her and dragged his son to the other room. Harry glanced at her before inviting her in.

"I'm a bit wet," Aquila admitted, wincing as she tried to unstick her skirt from her legs. "Ugh."

"They'll ask questions, and I feel like you'll have more answers than me." Aquila doubted that. She followed him into the living room, hiding her grimace at the furniture that was severely ... ugly. There was no other word for it. The couch and the chairs were all not matching and almost fluorescent.

"See what you did? You've finally driven him loopy!"

"Vernon! Don't say that!" a woman cried, cradling Dursley's head in her arms. A bucket was resting between the boy's legs and he looked pale and slick with sweat.

"Chocolate," Aquila stated. "He just needs a bit of chocolate."

Vernon turned towards her. "What happened to him?"

"I..." She glanced at Harry, but he didn't seem to know. "I was walking to the park. It was so nice out and I wanted to get a bit of color-" She winced as he seemed to be losing patience. "They came out of nowhere, I swear, sir. It started to pour and I ran into these two as we got into the tunnel - the storm tunnel down the road-"

"I know the very one," Vernon interrupted. He didn't seem like a very patient man.

"These- These, Dementors - Uh, they're sort of these cloaked figures that - er, they suck out your soul, I suppose. They're not supposed to be this far south. They surround the Isle of Skye, guarding a prison for-for witches and wizards that ... well, they murder people-"

"And one of them sucked Dudley's soul out?"

"No!" Aquila said quickly. "No, he just needs a bit of chocolate. The dementors, they-they feed off of your happiness. That's how they live. All they've done to your son is made him feel a bit sad and cold on the inside. Chocolate helps that. It's the best treatment. He wasn't affected that much. Only a few seconds, but it makes Muggles a bit sick, because of the direct magical contact-"

"You're one of his lot-"

Aquila winced at the obvious way he was looking at her. Like a second class citizen. "Yes. I, er, go to his school. Never met him before, actually, though. He's in a different social cloud than I." She glanced at Potter, rolling her eyes. "I'm quite certain chocolate will help though."

The mother hopped up, her red hair a streak as she ran to the kitchen and was back in an instant, handing the candy bar to her son. Dudley hesitated, looking queasy, but ate it after a moment, a few hesitant bites. Already colored seemed to be appearing. He stood, shrugging out of his mother's vice grip. "You knew it was coming."

"Er, yeah. You can tell," Aquila told him. She glanced at Potter. "Boy Wonder recognized the signs."

Eyes turned to Harry, but Dudley's stayed on her. "You knew as soon as you started talking to us," Dudley stated. "He didn't even know yet."

"I study science during the summers," she admitted. "Er, I like learning." She blushed as eyes turned back to her. "Um, the condensation of the air. It was scorching outside, and in three seconds flat it is pouring and freezing." She glanced at herself for proof. "It's not natural. Not even our magic can do that." She cleared her throat. "The dementors bring freezing cold air. They live in it and they survive in it. They've never lived in warm air before. It's physically impossible. Anyway, they literally froze the air until the water that was up high and causing it to be humid and deathly hot, condensed into storm clouds. The rain was just the result of the immediate condensation..." They looked lost. "I just knew it wasn't normal. There were storms all the time at my school when Dementors guarded it one year."

Dudley's eyes got wide. "Didn't they attack?"

"The only person they ever attacked was POtter," she stated. "He went out of the boundaries one day during our Quidditch match."

"That was against your team?"

She glanced at Potter incredulously. "I've been on the team for four years, Gryffindor. I'm a Beater."

"You?" He assessed her. "You're _that _Aquila?"

She shrugged. "I'm stronger than I look, Potter. What about you? Can you even press more than Granger's weight? Your girlfriends, what? Hundred pounds?"

"He has a girlfriend?" Dudley demanded.

Aquila grinned. "Well, no. Well-" She glanced at Potter. "He does have a thing for Cho Chang, but he feels too guilty about Cedric to go after her. So I guess the answer would still be no. Granger's into that Bulgarian heartthrob - Viktor Krum. Has Weasley realized he has feelings for her yet?"

"Er-"

"No," Aquila summed. A loud clap of thunder caused Aquila to jump. It sounded so much like apparation. Apparation. . . "I need to get home. Uh, glad you're alright-"

"I still have questions."

"I live at Number 8," she informed him. "You can stop by and ask, if you want." She glanced at Potter. "Er, you too. I might go crazy not living in a magical community. Never tried a Muggle town before." She glanced toward the window as it thundered once more. "Twas great meeting you all."

Aquila turned to leave when a hand grabbed her arm. She looked up in surprise to find the mother staring at her, a pinched smile on her face - but it reached her eyes so it was sincere. "It's pouring buckets. Stay until it calms down. You can ring your mother and tell her you're staying for dinner. In fact, you can invite your parents over-"

"We don't have a phone," Aquila admitted. "We don't call people."

"Harry, go invite her parents over," Petunia insisted. "Would you like something dry? I can place your dress in the dryer. I'm sure I have something that fits you. I still have a few things from my secondary school-"

"Oh, I don't want to trouble you. I really should be getting back," Aquila insisted. Why was she inviting her and her mother over? It didn't make any sense. The woman didn't even know her. "Er-"

"You saved my son from having his soul sucked out, so-"

"Oh, that wasn't me-"

"Nonsense. Harry, go on. Fetch her parents. And make sure you bring an umbrella. Wouldn't want them to get wet. Now, come with me, dear."

"Er, it's just my mother and I. Dad died when I was little," she stated awkwardly.

"Go get her mum, then," the woman prodded Potter, shoving him out the door.

Aquila was directed towards the stairs as she shot Potter a confused look. He shrugged like he didn't know either. Taking an umbrella he ducked out into the dark outside. He really shouldn't be outside. "My name's Petunia Dursley. Please, call me Petunia. Now, what size do you wear? You're quite skinny-"

"Er, not that sure. Wizard sizes are different than Muggle."

"Nevermind that. We'll find something." She opened the last door at the end of the hall - the same as her mother's room - and she noticed it was just as badly matching as the sitting room. "Do you have a specific pattern you like?"

"Oh, no, I'm sure anything's fine," Aquila admitted. She spotted the bathroom. "Do you mind if I, er... do something with my hair?"

"Oh, make yourself at home," Petunia insisted, digging through the closet.

"Thanks," Aquila muttered before moving towards the door. She left it open, but grimaced when she saw herself. Her black hair was slick and she ran her hands though it to try to brush it out before it dried in knots. She pulled out her bun and redid her hair, so that when it dried, it would be at least somewhat pretty in a simple ponytail at her shoulder. She didn't wear makeup - she found it took much. Too Hufflepuff. Too Muggle. Her mother didn't allow it, either. Said her little girl didn't need it.

So Aquila listened - most of the time. The Ball had been different. She had gone all out. She had glittered and perfumed and put on high heels and she had dressed in an extravagent and fancy dress that had cost a fortune. And he had gone with _her_.

"Is this alright?" Petunia's voice interrupted. Aquila glanced up sharply, seeing the rather severe looking woman holding out a... well, it wasn't bad in the slightest. She certainly had taste when she was younger. The dress was a pale green color, sweetheart neckline. Aquila took it, surprise obviously on her face. "Yes, my sister helped me with my fashion sense. It was atrocious."

"This is gorgeous," Aquila murmured. She touched the fabric, feeling the silk of it slide against her fingers.

"I'll start dinner then, while you change. You can just bring your dress down when you're ready for it to be dried."

"Thank you," Aquila said as Petunia turned away. Petunia glanced back, confused. "Why are you doing this? I could have just gone home. Two seconds in the rain is no trouble."

"I insist," Petunia said simply. "You're a good girl. You remind me of my sister..." She gave a nod. "I only ask that ... you don't say the word magic in the house. Vernon hates magic... he loathes it."

"I wouldn't want to-"

"Nonsense. I'm sure you can change his mind," Petunia said simply. She closed the bathroom door shut behind her. Aquila was quick as she slid out of her wet sundress and used her wand to dry her hair before she balled up her dress and exited the bathroom, figuring out to turn off the lights. She cautiously walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, the ball of wet dress in her hands. Petunia turned when she saw the girl. "Oh! It looks lovely on you! Brings out your natural complexion." She took the wet dress. "Let's just get this dried up, then. Would you like some tea?"

"Oh, no, thank you." Aquila shifted awkwardly. "Would you like me to help? I can cook."

"Oh, would you be a dear and stir the noodles?"

"Sure," Aquila said quietly.

"What did you say your name was?" She glanced out of the corner of her eye to Vernon, who had asked the question. He was standing with arms crossed. Dudley was just finishing off his chocolate bar.

"Aquila. But my friends call me Ella."

"Aquila," Vernon repeated gruffly. "Strange name."

"It means Eagle in Latin," Aquila informed him. "It's also a constellation in the sky. My mother likes the stars."

"I see," Vernon muttered. She didn't think that was a good tone he had, but she didn't comment. The door opened suddenly and Harry's voice permeated.

"I'll take that from you."

"Oh, thank you." Yes, her mother's posh and sophisticated accent from when she grew up in the high life of Pureblood society in London. Frequent visits with wizard and muggle royalty.

"Oh! You must be Aquila's mother," Petunia gushed. "My, you two could be sisters!" Aquila highly doubted that. Her mother was blonde, curly haired, brown eyes, and looked no older than twenty five. "My name is Petunia, and this is my husband, Vernon. And our son, Dudley." She glanced towards Harry. "I'm sure you've met Harry, my nephew."

"Oh, yes, lovely to meet you. My name's Euryale Rosier-Black." Harry's eyes jumped at that. He recognized both names - he may not have registered that she was a Black before when they were about to be hunted by some dementors.

"Yes, well, come in, come in," Vernon insisted. "I'll take your coat."

"Oh, thank you. I'm afraid I had no time to dress up. I've been unpacking all day," Aquila's mother apologized. She shed her coat, revealing the wool dress that seemed to be in fashion - that forties thing. Aquila rather liked them, actually, so she had no qualms, but her mother was a bit over dressed... and in a Muggle community. That style didn't fly anymore.

"Oh, that's absolutely lovely," Petunia admitted kindly. Aquila doubted the woman had ever given so many compliments in her life. "Dinner's almost finished. Do you like pasta?"

"Oh, I grew up on it," Euryale smiled brightly. Aquila stepped back from the stove and Euryale looked her over. "You've changed."

"I got caught up in the rain," Aquila admitted. "Petunia was kind enough to offer me this as she dried my dress."

Euryale smiled at that, thanking the red haired woman, before Aquila was shooed out of the kitchen. "Do you like tea? I'm about to put a kettle on."

"Tea would be lovely. I'll drink any."

Petunia insisted that the two of them take their seats as she finished up in the kitchen. Her and her mother sat together, Vernon at one end. Dudley Dursley sat across from Aquila, looking uncomfortable and out of place. Harry sat besides him, looking the same. A glance towards Vernon and he was trying to stuff his shirt into his pants without her mother - who was sitting closest to him - from noticing. She supposed her mother being gorgeous was a perk to helping Petunia let Vernon like witches and wizards.

Aquila glanced towards Petunia as a she set a few cups of tea on the table. "Are you sure you don't want a cuppa, Aquila?"

"I'm sure, thank you," Aquila murmured.

"Well, then, we have water, coffee-"

"Water would be lovely," Aquila interrupted before the woman could go on.

She nodded and ran off.

"So, Euryale, was it?" Aquila's mother nodded to Vernon, a smile hinting at her lips as she sipped from her tea delicately. "Where's it you come from?"

Aquila guessed that this would be an awkward dinner... a very awkward dinner indeed.


	2. Chapter 2

Aquila spun her fork around the plate, trying and failing to accomplish a single mouthful. "So, Aquila, do you have a boyfriend?"

She glanced up quickly, nearly elbowing the table in the process. Her mother shot her a look of disdain at her blatant display of ill manners. "Oh, no. I, er, no."

"And whyever not? You're a very beautiful girl!" Petunia insisted. Aquila swallowed. There was no way she could get out of the questioning without being rather blunt.

"Well, let me rephrase that, then," Aquila began. "You see, I did have a boyfriend. Very handsome man named Cedric Diggory." Petunia nodded for her to go on. She caught Dudley seeming to recognize the name and glance at Harry. Aquila kept her eyes on Petunia. "We dated for two and a half years. We were great. And then last winter, he goes to the Yule Ball - a Christmas party for the four champions of the TriWizard Tournament - with a different girl. Mind you, I was quite surprised when I found out that my own boyfriend wouldn't be escorting me to the school ball, but instead a girl that's in the same class as me and was, before that point, one of my best friends." Aquila snorted and picked up her glass of water.

"So, I went to the ball with his best friend. He didn't care. We talked it out afterwards and he admitted it was a mistake, but she asked him before he could ask me..." Aquila rolled her eyes to tell them what she thought of that. "Come spring time, the second task of the tournament, each champion had the person they cared for most kidnapped and placed at the bottom of the lake. I was not Cedric's most prized possession. It was Cho Chang, the girl he escorted, my ex-best friend. I almost called it off, but I was stupid and listened to him as he begged me to just wait until the end of the tournament because he wasn't thinking right." She took a sip of water and glanced at Petunia. "And then he was murdered in front of Potter here. So... I did have a boyfriend, but he died, so I don't have one anymore."

There was a tense silence. "I'm very sorry to hear that."

"Yes, I was as well." She smirked as she sipped her water once more. "I'll move on eventually. It is a woman's duty in my world to marry high up in the Ministry's standards." Her words were dull, as if she was relaying a speech she had heard a million times. "With my blood, that is. I can only honor it with a good marriage."

"Spoken like she knows her place," Vernon laughed, reaching for his fourth glass of brandy. "I'm sure her father's very proud."

"Oh, he died long ago," Euryale said. Aquila was surprised with the strength she spoke with. It wasn't like she sobbed over him like the day the body was delivered to their door with the words traitor etched upon his chest. Aquila remembered seeing him before her mother had locked her in her room. If there was one thing the Dark Lord believed, it was honor in death. The honor he gave Regulus Black was delivering his body back to them.

"And how old are you, Ella?" Vernon questioned.

"I'll be seventeen this August," Aquila answered carefully. She successfully bound a few strands of the pasta and placed in it her mouth.

"Same as our Dudley. June twenty-third, right, lad?"

Dudley looked up from his plate. "Right."

"A man in our world," Euryale smiled at the boy. "Seventeen is the age of adulthood, you see."

"Is that so?" Vernon asked. "Is that when you graduate, then, from that magic school of yours?"

"Typically, you graduate at the age of eighteen, but that just depends upon the birthday," Aquila admitted. "I have a rather early one. Potter, on the other hand, is the youngest in his class. Though we are only twenty seven days apart on the calendar, we are in separate years. You must be eleven by the time you enter your first year. Not a day younger come August first."

"And do you take A levels? Our Dudley's going off to college this year," Petunia stated proudly.

"A levels?" Aquila repeated, confused. She glanced at Potter, who seemed to have a better grasp at the Muggle world than she.

"NEWTs for us," Harry stated.

"Yes, we do, then," Aquila nodded. "In our seventh year. I'm only going into my sixth this year. Mr. Potter will be in his fifth."

Petunia seemed fascinated. "And what do you wish to study, come next year? Better yet, what profession do you wish to persue?

"I hope to take as many NEWTs as I can," Aquila admitted. "Specifically astronomy and Arithmancy. However, I'll most likely take History of Magic and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Potions, if I get the proper OWLs for Professor Snape's class."

"Yes, Severus is very specific in who he admits into his class," Euryale sighed. "I've written time and time again, hoping he'd be more lenient, but to no avail. My eldest, you see, received an Exceeds Expectations and was cast away from the class. Severus, however, only accepts Outstandings, just a grade higher." Petunia seemed to blanch at the name.

Instead, she said, "You have an elder child?"

"Oh, yes, after my brother - Evan. Evan Andromede Black. He's currently in Spain for the Order of the Phoenix."

Aquila kept the scowl of distaste from appearing. "That's simply wonderful. Will he be living with the two of you, when he returns?"

"Oh, he won't be returning," Euryale stated. She sipped her tea as Petunia shot Vernon a confused look. But Euryale offered no further comment, and the Dursleys thought it better not to push.

"Aquila, you never said what you wanted to do once you graduate," Petunia reminded the girl.

"Oh, I didn't?" Aquila asked. "Sorry. Um, well... I'm not quite sure, but I'm a massive fan of Quidditch and I really hope to be a professional player one day. It's a sport in our world, see. You fly broomsticks ... er, I think it could be quite comparable to your football matches. Only there are a few balls that are charmed to do some severe damage. I remember my first match I broke my arm and leg in three places because I fell three hundred feet. Of course it was alright the next day. Madame Pomfrey is an excellent healer. But I couldn't stop flying since. It's exhilerating. My first match was against Potter. Of course we lost, but we almost had the snitch. Our scores were three hundred and ten to Gryffindor and three hundred to Ravenclaw. Best game I've ever played. We had three people get knocked out and it was pouring and-" She stopped suddenly, blushing. "Sorry." She cleared her throat and glanced at her mother. "I won't have a profession when I'm older. Mother's organizing a marriage with a family in Italy." Aquila met Petunia's eye and rolled them so that her mother couldn't see. "I'll graduate and stay with the family until I marry one of their sons." She let out a breath. "Befitting of a girl my _caliber_."

She glanced at Dudley across from her to see him surprised. "Arranged marriages still exist?"

"Be glad we don't put you in one, boy," Vernon stated. "I understand the reason. These are tough times we're living in."

"Indeed they are," Euryale admitted. "With the war starting, I fear my children may be the ones to fight it, just as my generation were the ones to fight the first war." She glanced at Vernon and smiled. "You've been so kind to take in Harry as you did. Family is always family."

"As I've always said," Vernon boomed. "Spoken well right." He sipped his brandy. "Tell me, Ella, what is it you do at this school of yours? Do you have friends?"

"Dad," Dudley groaned.

"Oh, it's pretty much like any school, I'd imagine," Aquila admitted. Aquila was confused though. He seemed interested in her world, not repulsed like Petunia had warned. "Sports, card games, wizard chess - which is brutal - erm, there's ghosts and unicorns that roam the grounds. There was once a dragon, too, but the Ministry made any dragon in Britain illegal, so she was shipped off to Romania. Oh, there was a three headed dog, too. Real Cerberus. Um, we go to class. There's this little village we can shop in some Saturdays. If you aren't studying, however, you're usually up to no good." She laughed quietly, like it was an inside joke. Vernon laughed loudly with her. "I do have friends. Everyone in Hogwarts is amazingly friendly towards one another." Potter snorted. "Some people, that is. Though, if you're ever in a time of need, you'll have someone to help you through it." She glanced towards Potter. "I daresay Potter's got the biggest fanclub in the castle."

"Castle?" Dudley blurted. "You go to school in a castle?"

"Oh, yes, it was built by the four founders - Godric Gryffindor, the lionhearted and the brave. Lover of all witch and wizard, and Muggle alike; Rowena Ravenclaw, the wise and the all knowing. Keeper of archives and knowledge for all of those she took under her wing. Helga Hufflepuff, the kind and humble. She took in all those that had no other place to go. And then Salazar Slytherin, the cruel and the cunning. He that uses any means to achieve his ends may take refuge in his house, and turn rotten by the time the years over. They built the school a thousand years ago. Rowena's daughter roams the castle after an escape gone wrong."

"Fanclub, boy? What are you, a superstar?" Aquila glanced at Harry confused. They didn't know? When no one laughed, Vernon seemed confused himself. "Are you?"

"Er, defeating a wizard may have warranted some girls to, er... well, start a fanclub."

"And give you love potions at every turn," Aquila threw in.

"Er, yeah, that too."

"What did you do, then? Why do they love you? I mean, you aren't that good looking, are ya?" Dudley asked. "And, I mean, you were just a baby."

"Oh, he's saved dear little Ginny Weasley's life." Aquila grinned as Potter blushed. "And Hermione Granger's. And just about everyone else that year in danger of the basilisk. He also saved a French girl's little sister even though she wasn't 'yours to save'." She glanced at Vernon and then Petunia, before finally Dudley as she said, "I assure you, he keeps his hero quota plenty full by the time the year's out."

"That so, boy? Why didn't you say?" Vernon said as though he was proud, but Aquila caught the flat tone and how he avoided looking Potter in the eyes.

"Er, it's nothing big, really," Potter muttered. "I don't like the, er, fanclubs or whatever."

"Do teachers give you good grades just because of it?" Dudley asked, seemingly interested in that response.

"Teachers hate him just because of it," Aquila replied honestly.

"Most of them don't. It's just Snape - and that's only because of my dad. And I reckon the new defense teacher will like me. Mad-Eye did, even though he was a Death Eater."

"Sorry. Remind me again how many teacher's we've been through? My first year we had this teacher that couldn't even read try to teach us defensive spells that I don't even think he's heard of. My second year we had a blithering idiot that stuttered his way through a lesson and Potter murdered him."

"I didn't murder him."

"Sorry, he tried to kill you. It was self defense, really. You-Know-Who was hiding under his turban. And then third year we had a ... ugh, another idiot that was quite vain. If he wasn't talking about himself in class, he was talking about what he would do if he confronted a giant snake that was loose in the school. Fortunately... er, unfortunately, he managed to get knocked around by a few rocks and his mind turned to mush and he couldn't even remember his own name." Harry snorted.

"It was Ron's wand, not the rocks."

"Was it, really?" Aquila asked, surprised. "I've always heard the rocks. Wasn't Weasley's wand broken?"

"Exactly."

Aquila snorted. "And then fourth year... I will admit, despite Lupin's condition, he was the best teacher I've ever had. I actually learned in his class." She glanced at the Dursley's, who didn't know. "He was a werewolf and by the Ministry, sadly, they are restricted from interaction with people. Shunned from society, really, for a condition they can't help. Werewolves are made by force, not by choice. Dumbledore was very kind to give him the job, just as Snape was kind to give him the wolfsbane potion. Fifth year... Merlin, Mad-Eye was insane. I mean, it wasn't him, just some imposter, but torture curses in class, the killing curse?" She gave a disgusted sigh. "Glad he's gone. The positions cursed so no one can maintain it more than a year."

"That's horrible," Dudley muttered.

Aquila shrugged. "We're pretty used to weird at my school."

"And where did you move from, then?" Vernon questioned. "For not having a telephone, I'd imagine it was somewhere far?"

"Dogweed Glen," Euryale stated. "It's a wizarding community off of East End in London. Around twenty thousand of our kind live there. We stayed there after my husband died until the war started once more."

"What made you chose Little Whinging?" Petunia asked. "I daresay, we aren't even on the map."

"Precisely," Euryale smiled. "It's a good place to hide from the wrong people. Albus Dumbledore suggested it to me in passing. Of course, I didn't realize Harry Potter would be residing just down the road, but now I see why Dumbledore was so insistant. You're a man to be guarded, Mr. Potter."

Potter didn't seem happy with this. Aquila finished the spaghetti off of her plate and took a sip of her water. Her eyes darted up to meet Dudley Dursley's, but he looked away quickly, as if embarrassed. She was curious as to why that was. Maybe he had more questions but didn't want to ask.

"You're always welcome to stop by," Aquila told them, her eyes darting from Dudley to Harry and then around to the parents. "I like company. Mother would like some as well, right, mother?"

"Of course. I'm afraid the house is a little packed with boxes, but once those are sorted out, you're welcome over any time for tea, lunch, dinner, even brunch. You needn't get in contact with us before, either. Just drop by. We're quite used to it," Euryale admitted.

"And the same with you two," Vernon insisted. Aquila saw Petunia jerk in surprise - but the rather pleased sort when something went unexpectedly well. "Such a well-raised girl you got there. Saved my boy today, she did."

"Saved him?" Euryale repeated, glancing at Aquila with concern.

"I didn't-" Aquila winced. "It's not what you think. I went to the park, and it started to rain..." She winced again as her mother probed her to continue. "Er, well you see Potter got separated from us-" She gestured towards Dudley. "And we were at opposite ends of the tunnel and they came out of nowhere-"

"You know better than to use magic outside of school," Euryale warned.

"I didn't," Aquila promised. "The dementors attacked. I-I told Dursley to stay still and calm but it was the weirdest thing. The dementor didn't go for me. It _pushed __me_ _away_. It was given orders to go after those two. I nearly broke my wand with the force. And it attacked him. I've never produced a patronus. I couldn't even think of a memory. I was trying and I was about to-but I didn't. Potter's patronus got the dementors out of there and we helped Dursley get home and-"

"You didn't think to inform me that dementors attacked?"

"It wasn't like I could," she muttered. "It was pouring outside and I had to make sure they treated him properly before there was any permanent damage. I thought that was more pressing-"

"They could come back."

Aquila took a deep breath - one that was quite obviously forced to those watching the exchange - and she nodded. "You're right, I'm sorry. Next time I'll think to inform you immediately." Euryale nodded in satisfaction. "It was a wicked patronus, though," Aquila smirked, glancing at Potter. "What is it? A deer?"

"Stag," Potter corrected. "The same as my father's."

"Wicked," Aquila approved. "Me dad's was a crocodile."

"What is a patronus?" Dudley asked, confused.

"It's a representation of your soul, in a projection through a spell. It can be any size, but usually, by the time ten seconds of casting has past, it is life sized to what one would be. Most take the form of common animals - badgers, horses, deer. It is very rare if one takes the form of a magical creature. Albus Dumbledore's, the headmaster of my school, has the patronus of a phoenix. A bird that is reborn from its ashes. And there's a rumor that the Dark Lord's patronus is a basilisk, a giant snake that when one looks into its eyes, you die." She watched as the color drained from his face. "But I highly doubt that last bit. A memory to produce a patronus must be pure and happy and untainted by anything - and the Dark Lord kills too much for his memories to be untainted." She sipped from her water. "And it can't just be any happy memory. It has to be the happiest memory you've ever had. That just thinking about it makes you smile."

He nodded, like he understood. She wondered if he really did. He seemed smart. But in a way that he didn't want others to know it. She didn't know if that was a good thing or not. "Have you ever gone to school? Er, Muddle schools?"

"Muggle," Aquila corrected lightly. "And no... They've always fascinated me, though."

"A real learner, this one," Vernon deduced.

"Where are you going to college?" Aquila questioned. "That is what you call it, right?"

"Er, Brooklands. It's just a little bit away from here," Dudley answered.

"And what do you study there? I'd imagine you don't have Potions or Charms class."

"Uh, I'll be studying business, accounting, law, and psychology," he admitted, turning a bit pink.

"Just like his dad," Vernon approved. Dudley didn't seem happy with that, but nodded anyway. "He'll take over the business once I retire."

"Oh? What is it you do?" Euryale asked, intrigued.

"Drills," Vernon stated. "I'm a director for Grunnings. A drill manufacturer."

"Fascinating," Euryale stated, though she had no clue what that even was. "You must love your job very much. Does it pay well?"

Aquila choked on her water. "Mother," she hissed. Euryale didn't seem to notice her mistake. She glanced at her daughter and away again. Aquila recognized the look in her eye. She was going to ruin everything. Ruin it like she always did. Amos Diggory - the kindest man she had ever met - had grown to hate her mother being around, just because her mother despised the world for what had been taken from her - her husband.

"It's a question, Aquila, darling. He doesn't need to answer if he doesn't wish to."

"Mother, don't do this, please."

"Do what, darling?" Euryale asked. "What about you, Petunia? Do you work?"

"No, I don't," Petunia stated. She glanced at Aquila as the girl dropped her head.

"And whyever not? Isn't that Muggle custom, where the woman works as well?"

"No-I don't think so."

"Oh, strange. I could have sworn it was."

"I think it's time we left," Aquila admitted after a tense silence. She stood hastilly, pushing her chair in and grabbing her plate and her mothers. "Do you put your dishes in the dishwasher, Petunia?"

"I'll get those," Petunia insisted, rising. "Must you be leaving so soon?"

"And you, Mr. Potter... My husband's dead because of you."

Tears threatened to pool in Aquila's eye. "Yes, it's best," Aquila said in a forced pleasant tone. "This dinner was very lovely. I-Thank you very much for inviting me to stay. I'm so sor-"

"I didn't do anything to your husband. I don't even know who he is," Potter replied honestly.

"Didn't do _anything?_" Euryale hissed.

"Okay," Aquila stated, forcing her mother out of the chair and pushing the chair back in, neatly. She bit her lip to keep the tears from pooling. "It's time to leave, mother. Please, don't say anything more. Don't ruin this night-"

"Regulus Black," Euryale snapped, ignoring her daughter. "Your precious godfather's brother. He backed out of the Death Eaters for you. He went to Dumbledore because of you and now he's dead. Murdered-"

"Stop it," Aquila snapped, glaring at her mother. "Stop it right now. We're leaving." As her mother turned quickly and rushed to the hall for her coat, Aquila felt the tears of shame in her eyes as she gazed at the shocked Dursley family, and Potter looked extremely confused. "I am so sorry. So sorry. She always does this and... It's not your fault, Potter. She doesn't blame you at all. She blames everyone she meets..." Aquila swallowed. "Please, forgive me. I-She always promises she won't do it again and I'm a fool to believe she'll keep her word. I apologize profusely for your ruined evening and.. I'm sorry for this. I'm so sorry-"

"Oh, dear," Petunia insisted, rushing towards the teenage girl. She hugged her tightly. Aquila recognized the scent of lavender and hibiscus. She smelt calming. "It's alright."

"Your dress. Do you want me to-?" Aquila asked, her voice muffled in Petunia's shoulder as the woman refused to let go.

"Oh, keep it. I'll bring your dress to you in the morning. How's that?"

"Are you sure-?"

"Your dress isn't dry yet anyway, so I'm quite sure." She released the girl and Aquila wiped away a few tears. "Now, I expect you over for tea tomorrow, Aquila. I believe we'll be quite good friends."

She was inviting her back? "I-Er, of course. I feel so too." She glanced into the hall where her mother was muttering to herself angrily. "I'm so sorry, again. If you'd like me to help with dishes or-or- anything. I don't know how to do much without my wand, but I feel so horrible and-"

"Nonsense. We'll manage. Despite everything I had a lovely evening getting to know you," Petunia insisted.

"It was lovely getting to know all of you," Aquila insisted. She saw Vernon watching her strangely as if he didn't know what to make of her. She nodded to him. "Thank you, Mr. Dursley for having me stay for dinner as well. That was very kind of you." He just nodded back to her and grumbled something. She nodded to the two teens before glancing at Petunia. "Thank you."

"Now, hurry home. I think you've just caught a break in the rain." However, loud clap of thunder diminished that theory and a heavy onslaught of rain poured against the roof, echoing in the silence. Aquila glanced at her mother once more. She could cast magic because of her mother. They couldn't trace it back to her, just her mother. She pulled out her wand and saw Petunia blanch a bit.

"Sorry, I just don't want to get wet. It only works before you go out into the water, you see..." Aquila waved her wand around her. "Impervius." A thin layer of gold sparks erupted from her wand and Petunia jumped back in fright. But the sparks settled around Aquila and she gave an apologetic smile as Petunia seemed to realize that it wasn't harmful magic. "I won't get wet now."

"Er, was that a bit of magic?" Dudley asked. At Aquila's nod, he pressed. "How do you do it?"

"A wand," she explained quickly as she heard her mother grow impatient. "It channels the magic inside of a... witch or wizard." She bit her lip. "Thank you for dinner, again... Er, I should be leaving. Goodbye."

"Goodbye, dear. I'll see you tomorrow morning."

Aquila nodded and brushed at the tears on her cheeks before she turned and grabbed her mother's arm with a bit of force and thrust her out into the rain. "Eugh, they have no taste in style," Euryale muttered.

"Honestly? You need to stop it," Aquila warned. She made sure the door was closed before she forced her mother along the path to the sidewalk. "I know you hate the world because dad's dead, but you don't need to ruin any chance I have at making friends."

"The boy sitting across from you was making googly eyes at you the entire time. He likes you. His intentions weren't honorable. Besides, you're to be betrothed. Why not just break his heart now instead of later?"

"They're the first friends I've made since we moved to this God forsaken town. The first friends I've ever made outside of school that aren't one of your Death Eater friends. I know you're an Order member, but you really do have friends in the wrong places. And I hate all of them. You try to make me to be this perfect lady, when in reality, I'm not. I'm just as screwed up as you are, but I want to make my own friends and live my own life. And maybe you'll put me in some arranged marriage with the Count of Monte Cristo or whoever, but I can still make friends."

"Not friends that want nothing more than a good shag before they go and get you pregnant and leave you with no one to marry you-"

"You don't even know them!" Aquila insisted. "Petunia offered me a dress to change into while my own dried. Vernon loathes magic, but he allowed me to stay for dinner and you were invited over, so that they could meet you. Petunia wanted Vernon to change his views on magic tonight! But what do you do? You ruin everything. You ruined what would have been me making friends with a very nice family - and their son and Harry Potter. Who saved my life today."

"That's another thing we need to talk about. Dementors?"

"When did you want me to visit? Before or after the storm?"

"You should have-"

"They aren't supposed to be here," Aquila insisted. "Someone set them on Harry and Dudley. Do you understand that? I wasn't the target - they were. And Harry's patronus charm would have gotten him expelled - especially when performed in front of a Muggle - but he wasn't because your magical signature is over the area. Any magic performed around here is written off as by you. They won't know Dudley was present because they'll assume that you were the only one there. Whatever happened will happen again." She swallowed as she shoved open Number 8's door. "And we need to be there to protect them."

"And your sob story? How your boyfriend died?"

"He did!" Aquila cried. She shut the front door after her mother was inside. "Do you not remember Cedric Diggory? You scared his father away after you tried to get him to sleep with you. He loathed you because you tried to break us apart. We could have been married, but you messed that chance up. And I loved him. Merlin, I loved Cedric so much, and he was murdered. In a blink of an eye, he was sprawled along the ground in front of the entire school and I could do nothing as I stared down at his body like it wasn't real. I felt so helpless as his father cried over him and Cho Chang - the stupid bitch that took him from me - went to him and I couldn't. Because I was stuck at the top of the rafters and by the time I knew what had happened, they had blocked it off. And I felt so... it was like you with father. I felt so dead inside." Her mother glanced away quickly. "But that doesn't make me dead to the world. I want to move on, to get new friends, to fall in love again and to - to-" Aquila stopped, seeing that her mother didn't seem to be listening anymore. "You would have noticed when I got back how I was so withdrawn, crying all the time... Who did you think I was dating? You knew Cedric died. All you care about is father. Father's dead. He's been dead for fifteen years. I know you cry over him every night, but he's dead. He'll never come back. And you need to get over it. You can't make everyone hate you. It doesn't make it easier to hate yourself."

Aquila headed up the stairs. "Aquila, we need to talk about this-"

"No, we don't. Because I'm not asking you to not do it ever again, because clearly you're going to. So there's no point. You simply just will die a lonely woman because you make everything awkward, uncomfortable, and you make people hate you."

"Aquila-"

"No," Aquila said firmly, shutting her bedroom door shut behind her. The sound of her mother's sobs echoed into the house, just as they did every night.


	3. Chapter 3

She saw Petunia approaching before she even brushed her teeth. She did so quickly and checked to make sure her mother was still asleep before heading downstairs and opening the door before Petunia had the chance to ring the bell. "Oh, come in," Aquila greeted. "Good morning."

"Good morning," Petunia smiled brightly. She held up the summer dress. "Just as I've promised."

"Oh, I have your green dress. I cleaned it," Aquila stated. "Excuse the, er, boxes."

"Oh, it's alright," Petunia insisted.

"Please, take a seat," Aquila insisted. "Would you like tea?"

"Oh, no thank you. I'm fine. Is your mother here?"

"Sleeping," Aquila stated. She opened the door to the wash room and selected the green dress that was hanging. She brought it out to Petunia, who traded her.

"Good, I've been thinking, Aquila... Last night." Here it came. "The arranged marriage thing." Not what Aquila was expecting. "She's not forcing you to do something you don't want to, is she?"

"Oh, no," Aquila admitted after a moment. "I will marry whoever she picks. My brother and I are the last of the Black family name. Although my husband isn't as important as my brother..." She paused and laughed lightly. "Alright, that's a lie. I want to get married, don't get me wrong. My mother... she was in an arranged marriage with my father. They loved each other very much... But, sometimes I fear that his death took all the sanity she had. She will make a contract and I will go to the family when I graduate. There's no dispute with that." Aquila bit her lip as she glanced at the dress on her lap. "I want to chose who I marry, however. My marriage to a pureblood family is expected of me... So I will do it." She gave a bitter smile. "But I'll do it kicking and screaming the entire way."

Petunia laughed at that. "I know nothing of your world, just what I've heard from my sister and that was so long ago... Vernon does like you. It's amazing how quickly he warmed to you." She perked up slightly. "My son likes you as well."

"Does he?" Aquila asked. Petunia nodded. "I didn't get that impression at dinner."

"He's a shy boy," Petunia admitted. "Very outgoing, but when he's in the same vacinity with a girl, well... He clams up."

Aquila swallowed. "Nothing would happen between us, I'm afraid. It can't. Mother will expect me to be engaged next summer-"

"That's why I'm most upset to hear that news," Petunia admitted. "I never think you'll get married, but you never know with these things. Oh, well." She gazed at Aquila with something like fondness. "Do you know the man you might marry?"

"No," Aquila admitted.

"Is this very common in your world?"

"No," Aquila sighed. "Not anymore. Twenty years ago was the last phase of it, when the Dark Lord fell. The pressure to marry well was over. But with him back, she's just trying to protect herself, and me in the future." She gave a wry smile. "I only know of two people in my school in an arranged marriage. Both of them to each other. Draco Malfoy and Astoria Greengrass. It's not common at all... It's stupid and degrading and makes the women feel like a piece of livestock, while the men get all the say in whether or not the marriage should go through or not." Aquila waved a hand towards her face. "They choose off of looks. The wizarding world is still very strick with customs. We wear long robes and we haven't changed much in a thousand years. The same buildings still stand, some people are nearing two hundred years old, and they shape our society."

Petunia nodded. "Sort of like our world. We move back in fads to some other era, because it's ressurected, people think it looks great, but it's really just the same old thing-rediscovered again."

"I've never had company that was an adult before, you know," Aquila said suddenly. "It's refreshingly different."

"I'm glad. I don't know many people in the neighborhood," Petunia admitted. "They're either too old and gossipy or just starting their own families and have no time."

Aquila nodded quietly. "I'm so sorry about last night... My mother... she does it all the time. It's no excuse, but she starts the night pleasantly and then she ... she just blows up." Aquila sighed. "It's so embarrassing. I know you must think we're right mad, but-"

"Actually, I forgive and forget it," Petunia insisted. "What happened, happened. Though she did seem to be flirting with my husband." Aquila winced.

"She does that," Aquila admitted. "She doesn't mean it. I'm sorry if-"

"It's alright, Aquila," Petunia insisted. "Now, tea starts at three. Will you be arriving?"

"Of course. I'd be happy to. Do you want me to bring anything?"

"Just yourself," Petunia declared. She rose, dusting off her skirt. Aquila stood quickly as well. "Give your mother my regards. I have to make breakfast for Vernon before he leaves for work."

"Oh, then you should probably hurry. It's nearly eight."

Petunia nodded and headed for the door. Aquila opened it for her and Petunia crossed the threshold, hesitating. "There are a lot of questions Dudley, Vernon, and myself have for the wizarding world. We don't know much, you see. But... well, it is rather interesting."

"I'd be more than happy to answer anything." Aquila bit her lip. "You are legally allowed to know. Since Potter is under your ward, you can learn anything you wish. Otherwise, the Ministry would have to provide a secrecy oath, but your family is fine." She released her lip as she nodded. "I'll be at the park today if your son has questions." She watched as the elder woman nodded carefully, a small smile creeping onto her face. "He does seem to be more curious about the wizarding world than your husband, I will admit."

"I'll pass the word along." She ran her hand over the dress. "This is truly lovely on you."

"I'm sure it was even lovlier on you when you wore it."

Petunia laughed. "Oh, I never wore it. I kept it for years and years as my go-to for when I needed to lose some weight." She glanced at the dress fondly. "I've never worn it." She was silent a moment before she laughed. "Three o'clock, dear."

"I'll be there. Have a good morning," Aquila insisted.

"You as well." She seemed relatively pleased with herself as she left. Aquila sighed and shut the door before turning to the kitchen and squinting at the stove. She had no idea how to work it but it couldn't be that difficult. Finally she managed to make a breakfast of eggs and bacon before she turned the stove off and sat by herself at the table. It was the same routine. Since her brother had graduated this year, however, he wasn't there to teacher her about the Muggle stuff he had a fascination with. Euryale was right. Evan wouldn't be coming back. Not because he would probably die, but because he didn't want to. Who would return to their crazy mother? He was better off in Spain, where he'd meet a nice girl and marry her before mother could try to set him up with someone, as well. Aquila hoped she was Muggle - just to spite her mother.

It wasn't that Euryale was a blood surpremist. She wasn't, to an extent. She wanted to protect the reputation of her family more than anything.

Aquila went to her room to change from the silk pajamas she wore to something more fitting for a day out - a Muggle outfit of jeans and a tank top. She wrote a note to her mother about how she was "out" and left a plate of breakfast under the stasis charm before heading out into the sun. She hadn't ever gotten much color before - London was always cloudy and even if it was nice out, her mother never let her go too far.

The park was deserted - though she supposed because it was a Wednesday, parents were at work and their children were most likely with a babysitter. Aquila spotted the swings and took off in a run before she hopped onto them and began to swing. It was as close to flying as she could get in a Muggle neighborhood. She closed her eyes and let the wind blow back at her hair. It was close enough. Close enough to give her the illusion of swinging out of the way of Quaffles and darting between players to hit the bludger at the other team.

"Oi! Black!" Potter's voice called.

"I'm currently kicking your arse in our match, Potter. Allow me a minute while Cho catches the snitch."

She heard him laugh before someone grabbed her swing. Her eyes flew open and she aimed a glare in the direction of Potter. "She almost had it."

"I'm sure she did," Potter snorted. He glanced towards Dudley, who was standing with his hands in his pocket. "Er, Aunt Petunia said you were going to be here."

"Lonely, Potter?" Aquila questioned. She glanced at Dudley. "You don't have to stand all the way over there. There are plenty of swings for the two of ya."

They each took a swing beside her and she glared at Potter before she kicked back off and began to swing once more. "I've never been to a Muggle playground before. This is fun."

"You don't have playgrounds?"

"We don't have primary schools in the wizarding world," Aquila admitted. "Most of us are home-schooled how to read and write and then are taught basics to get us ahead of our peers in the first few weeks of school. In wizarding communities, no, there are no playgrounds. It depends on where you live." She gazed up at the sky, a grin on her face. "Ever been flying, Dursley?"

"Er, no."

"I'll have to take you sometime... Flying is our playground."

"Any idea who your Quidditch captain will be this year?"

Aquila laughed. "Me, of course. Professor Flitwick promised it to me after the last match. I took your beater's teeth out. No idea if it was Fred or George... You can never tell in the air who is who. And there may not have been any cup to compete for last year, but we sure as hell tried."

"Is, er, Quidditch always violant?" Dudley asked. "You said you broke your arm and leg first time. And you took someone's teeth out."

"Very violant," Aquila nodded. "You either pay attention or you don't. You don't, you get hurt." She grinned at him suddenly. "See that pink scar?" She thrust her arm out to show him and he nodded at the fading scar on her skin. "I got that second year after Malfoy sent me flying into the stands. The students barely had time to get out of the way before I crashed into the wood and fell down three floors. I was going one hundred kilometers an hour on my broom. Lucky I didn't lose my head." She saw his astonished look. "Davies about had to have a leg amputation once. Malfoy's absolutely brutal. A right bully that cowers behind the name of his father."

"Your dad was Sirius's brother."

Aquila looked at Potter sharply. "Yeah, and?"

Potter looked away quickly. "Nothing."

"He murdered your parents. He got my own dad killed. I owe no loyalty to him." Potter swallowed and Aquila glanced at Dudley. "Er, I do hope you aren't feeling a bit left out. I don't mean for you to be."

"Have you always been fascinated with Muggle schools?"

She nodded at the abrupt question. "Well, yeah, I mean, it's so different. I've never set foot in a different education system than my own. It's truly fascinating. Do you board at your schools?"

"Er, no, you just go for the day before you come back home," Dudley nodded.

"Oh... Are you close with everyone in your class? Or do you mostly just stick with a select group of friends?"

"Select group. It's easier that way. Know too many people and it's harder to get stuff done." Potter snorted. "Oi. I do get stuff done, Potter."

Aquila smiled. "I believe him." She threw Potter a look. "Are you rude to everyone or just people you don't like?"

"Er-" Potter said, at a sudden loss.

"Malfoy, Cedric, hell, even McLaggen gets some hate. Is it because they're guys or is it because you just stick with your two best friends and that's all?"

"Woah, I never-" Potter struggled for what to say. "That's not what I meant."

She smirked. "Sure it isn't. You know who I am, right? Your God-sister. That means that if you act out of line, I can get ahold of the dog and well... I don't think he'd be rather pleased."

"But you said you-"

"I never said it wasn't innocent Potter. We all know he is, in the Order," Aquila glanced at Dudley. "Wording means a lot, Potter. I don't owe loyalty to him, because he doesn't deserve it. I do, however, owe him the loyalty of the Black family. Family is family." She cleared her throat. "You were saying?"

"Er, yeah. There are some wicked parties though. Down on past this neighborhood, into the next, there are quite a few. Piers is having one this weekend."

"I gather there's drinking and idiocy and-"

He was about to nod when a voice cut through the air. "Oi, D-man. Who's this?" She slowed on the swing, her eyes watching one of the boys from yesterday, following another. His eyes darted to Potter. "Hanging out with the cousin?"

Aquila stood deftly and she watched as the boys looked her over appreciatively. "Ella Black," she offered, her hand out for them to shake. The boy in front took it, a smirk on his face as he kissed her knuckles. "You see the boy with black hair?" she said, her voice as normal as before, so they could obviously hear her. "I think he has a crush on me. Followed me here when all I wanted to do was go on the swings with Dudley." She threw a glare at Potter. "I don't even know who he is."

"Threaten you then, lovely?" the boy asked, glancing at Potter. "Oi, you, scat." Potter gave a disgusted sigh and stormed away, leaving a very smug Aquila behind. "Piers Polkiss." He gestured to the kid behind him. "This is Dennis."

Aquila nodded to him. "Pleasure, I assure you." She glanced at Dudley, "I've heard a lot about you." Dudley shuffled to his feet, looking a lot more confidant than before. "You have a party this weekend?"

"Depends. Are you coming, lovely?" Piers flirted - though it was obvious and Aquila had to stop herself from laughing as he gave her was she supposed was his 'you better be' look.

"Depends," she returned. "Am I invited?"

"I like you," Piers approved. He glanced at Dudley. "You should bring her to the party, Duds."

"Reckon I will," Dudley nodded. He stepped up besides Aquila. "What are you lot doing over here?"

"We came looking for you."

"Isn't nine a little early for you?" Dudley returned.

"Mum had me leave so she could clean the house," Piers shrugged. "Me dad's buying the alcohol. Say, beautiful, can you hold your liquor?"

Aquila laughed. "How do you think I survive boarding school? What liquor we talking?"

He sucked his teeth. "Vodka, rum, tequila."

She hadn't heard of any of them, but she doubted they were stronger than fire whiskey. "Oh, my school has stuff a lot stronger than that. I can hold it."

"You should bring some of your stuff."

"Can't," Aquila winced. "The girl that brings it brews it specifically in a location just a ways from my school."

"And where's that?"

"Russia," Aquila threw out there, not really quite sure where it came from, but with their discouraged looks they agreed that they'd have to wait.

"Saturday, eight o'clock."

"I'll be there," Aquila promised.

"I'm sure Dudley will give you directions. We're going to head over to Malcolm's, Dud. You can bring her along." Piers looked her over again, obviously in a lewd manner. "Or I will."

"That's alright. I'm supposed to be heading home. My mother wanted me by nine thirty to help her unpack." She glanced at Dudley to see he seemed a little relieved. "Er, see you later." She glanced at his friends. "Nice to meet you."

She wasn't even five feet away when she heard Piers hooting, "Shag her already, have you?" Aquila rolled her eyes.

"Shu'up, mate," Dudley replied gruffly. She could hear the skin meet skin as he punched his friend in the arm. "It's not like that. I just met her yesterday."

"A little out of your league, mate," another voice, most likely Dennis, stated. "Bit on the pretty side, isn't she?"

"What? I can't meet people now, mate?"

"Yeah? How did you meet then?"

"Er, well, she just moved in, ya see. I helped her with some boxes that she was struggling with." A good cover. One Aquila could remember. She leaped onto the road and glanced back at them. Their voices were a bit muffled, but she could still hear them.

"Mate, she's looking back here." Dudley glanced her way in surprise and she gave him a small smile - though she was truly just laughing at what Piers had whispered quite loudly - and turned away, playing with her hair as she wandered down the road. She couldn't hear their conversation any longer, just some hoots of laughter. She honestly had no idea how Dudley Dursley could be friends with those boys - then again, she didn't know what Dudley Dursley was like in the slightest.


	4. Chapter 4

She had just gotten out of the shower when Dudley knocked on her door Saturday night at six. He was early. Really early. She hastily slid her robe on before her mother heard the bell from the garden, and rushed downstairs, pulling the large boy into the house. "My mum's out back, but she doesn't really know I'm leaving so-" Aquila pulled him up the stairs quietly and led him into her room. "Sorry, I didn't know you'd be here so early. How long until we need to leave?"

"Eh-" he cleared his throat, looking away from her as his cheeks heated up. "I was just stopping by to, er, hang out before we left."

"Oh, well you can have a seat. I'll change in the bathroom. Do you want anything to drink?"

"I'm good," he admitted, flushing as he sat on the bed. Merlin, it's like he's never been in the same room as a girl before. She supposed her robe was a bit short, though. She went to her wardrobe, selecting a multitude of dresses. She gave him the choice between the red or black, which he hesitated with before chopsing the black.

She grinned and told him she'd be right back before she darted to the bathroom. The dress was short, hugging her body. Though the red was more revealing, she would admit. This one covered up her chest, but left nothing of her legs to the imagination. She used her wand to dry her hair and skin, making sure each black curl was perfectly placed, before she gathered her robe and headed into her bedroom, a toothbrush in her mouth.

"So, how is a Muggle party exactly?" she asked as she hung her robe on the back of her door. There was silence and she turned, pulling the toothbrush out of her mouth to repeat herself, but he wasn't paying attention. He was staring at her with his jaw dropped. She glanced down, self-conscious. "Should I change?" she asked. "I-I don't want to be over dressed."

He glanced away hastily, shifting in his seat. "Er-no, you look fantastic." She didn't seem convinced but finished with her teeth and used her wand to get rid of the spit. She set the toothbrush on her vanity and dug in her closet. "Muggle party... I don't know what your parties are like. There's music, drinking, dancing... Not very formal. Just sort of hanging out."

"Oh," she stated. "Well, that doesn't sound that bad." She grabbed her heels and then her flats. She held them up to him, raising an eyebrow. He chose heels. She grinned, sliding them on. She cast deodorant charms, and then a sticking charm on her dress. She didn't want it to fall off while she was dancing. She sprayed perfume before nodding to herself. "Well, am I presentable?"

"You're gorgeous, bloody hell," he muttered. "Try not to get too drunk. These blokes... they aren't a nice lot."

She nodded, "I don't like drinking too much, so I don't think that will be a problem. If I do start to drink too much... will you let me know?"

"Sure." He sounded like it was a promise she'd keep so she stuck her wand down the seam of her dress and twisted in the mirror to be sure she was presentable. Nodding to herself, she bit her lip as she faced him. "We don't have to leave for another twenty minutes."

"Good..." She joined him on the bed, seeing him tense. "Look, er... Dudley-"

"I'm not going to take advantage of you if you're drunk."

She glanced at him in surprise. She wasn't even going to suggest that. But he did seem sincere. "Good to know, but that wasn't what I was going to say..." He flushed in embarrassment. "My mother doesn't really... well, she doesn't want me hanging out with Muggles, so... I'm going to and I'm going to prove to her you're an alright lot. Also... erm, well don't tell my mum this, but I really do like your family."

He smiled carefully, though the smile really wasn't that big, it was pleasant. "Secret's safe with me."

She laughed lightly and bumped arms with him. "I'd imagine you have a girlfriend. She's lucky."

"Er, no girlfriend."

Aquila glanced at him, confused. "Oh... Well, single life's fun. If there's one thing I missed while I was in a relationship, it was just having fun. Eugh, men are so uptight."

"Oi, we all aren't uptight."

"i suppose not. I just happen to pick the guys that are a fun sponge."

He laughed at that and she was pleased with it. It was boisterous, infectious. She started to laugh with him. "Fun sponge?" he questioned. "Who says that?"

"I do," she defended in a laugh. "Merlin's beard, I don't make fun of _you_ for your weird terms." Dudley conceded and Aquila stood from her seat, tilting her head to the side as she watched him. "How long of a walk is it?"

"Not more than three blocks."

She bit her lip, nodding. "Um, when I drink... I just kind of get loud... and really giggly." She flushed in embarrassment. "If I say something... I probably mean it, but, um, maybe it's best if we forget what I say?"

"Whatever you wish. I'm a loud drunk, too, so I think I can manage to get you home."

"Great," Aquila smiled. She pulled open her bedside drawer and dug through her many accessories until she found a simple silver necklace. She put it on and then paused when she found a man's ring. She pulled it out slowly, staring at it a moment, lost in the memories. It wasn't hers, but her father's. It was his class ring that he had given the bouncing baby girl, because apparently every moment Aquila got with him, she would always take it off of his hand and try to fit it onto her baby fingers, but it was always too big. Her father had given it to her one a small chain to wear around her neck, so that when he was away to serve the Dark Lord, she would always have a bit of him with her. She had been wearing it when he died... She hadn't seen it in years - not since before she got her letter to Hogwarts. She always hid it from her mother, and brother - she always put it in the back of the drawer, seeing it as bad luck. A part of her younger self thought that it was a good luck charm and her father had died because he didn't have it.

"What's that?" Dudley asked.

Aquila jumped, forgetting she wasn't alone. She glanced at Dudley, not noticing how much time had passed. "It's... it's nothing," she murmured. She placed it back in her drawer carefully. "It was my father's class ring... I had forgotten I had it, is all." She smiled at Dudley as she shut the drawer. "Shall we?"

She led him down the stairs quietly, pausing and glancing towards the back, before taking his arm and pulling him out the front door. Once she shut it, she began to giggle.

"Your mum doesn't know you're going?"

"She does, but she doesn't know where it is, and she doesn't know that I am going, because she told me not to." Aquila grinned at him as they began to walk towards the end of the neighborhood, passing Number 4 on the way. "My mother doesn't really approve of making friends with Muggles. She says it's pointless as I'm only here three months out of the year and then I'll be shipped off like some mail order bride." She paused, thinking. "At least, I think that's what they're called. Anyway, I say whatever. I'm going to make friends with whoever I want. And while Piers probably has less than honorable intentions for befriending me, you aren't bad, so I'm willing to endure it."

Dudley grimaced, "He, uh... likes you."

"You don't have to sugar coat it," Aquila snorted. "He wants to have sex with me."

Dudley cleared his throat in surprise at the blunt statement. "Er, yeah."

"Well, he's not going to," Aquila informed Dudley decisively. "It's a party, not a brothel." She glanced at him suddenly. "Right?"

"Right," Dudley said uncomfortably. She tried to think of a subject change. "There's only two bedrooms anyway," Dudley continued, smirking as he glanced at her. "Usually one's already occupied by Malcolm by the time the party starts, so the empty one usually goes to the drunkest two people first."

"Merlin, you lot are so carefree," she exclaimed. "It's amazing." She let out a breath and stared ahead of them a minute. "My school we just sort of find an abandoned classroom... our dorms are shared with the entire class, so there are five other girls in the same room as me." She glanced at Dudley, shrugging. "Not as much privacy as you'd think."

He seemed to find this shocking, but didn't continue the conversation. Instead, he grimaced as he heard the pulsing music. "Right, that's them."

Aquila spotted the house that the party was taking place at. It didn't look special, but the flow of teens into the building was obvious. "Well, this sounds fun."

When they finally arrived, Piers flocked to the pair of them immediately, pressing two brown bottles to them. "Welcome. There's plenty of alcohol for any of your desires." He looked over Aquila and winked at her. "Quite sexy there, babe."

"Yeah, thanks," she said carefully. She sipped the liquor and found it tasted horrible. Merlin, they enjoyed this stuff? At least Firewhiskey had flavor.

"I'll introduce you to some people," Dudley offered and Aquila nodded, grateful for being pulled away from Piers as he tried to make another move on her. She was led to the kitchen where a few girls were talking loudly over the music and drinking out of plastic red cups. "Ella, this is Natalie, Amber, and Lucinda." Aquila gave them a polite smile and they looked her over before smiling back. "Girls, this is Ella. She just moved in down the road."

"I absolutely love your dress," one of the girls insisted. "Amber, isn't it gorgeous?" She approached Ella, passing the girl a red cup. She took the brown glass and gave it to Dudley. "Don't make her drink that, Dudders. This tastes so much better," the girl insisted. "I'm Natalie. I live across the street. Now, I insist that you tell me where you go that dress."

"Oh, it's custom made," Aquila admitted. "My mother had it designed."

"Wicked," Natalie breathed. She eyed it before glancing at Dudley. "Are you two together?"

"Friends," Aquila shrugged, making Natalie nod.

"Are you any good with aiming?" a different girl asked suddenly. "Dennis challenged us to beer pong, but we absolutely suck at it."

Beer pong? She glanced at Dudley. He just nodded to her. "I have spectacular aim," Aquila stated.

"That's it, you're playing for us," the third one declared. "If you win, you get the prize of the night."

"Prize?" Aquila asked, confused.

Natalie nodded behind her and Aquila turned to see a rather large bottle of some sort of alcohol with a bow on the top. Prize was written in some sort of marker on the glass. It was a stupid prize, but she supposed fitting for a game that seemed to revolve around aim and alcohol. "Are you willing to play for us?" Natalie asked.

"Yeah, sure," Aquila shrugged. She didn't see any harm in it. She promised to catch up with them as Dudley led her out back into the garden where there were more people and a table was set up in the middle of it, a pyramid of cups on each side. "How exactly do you play beer pong?"

"You bounce a ball across a table and it has to land in the other side's cup. If a ball lands on your end, in a cup, you have to down all the contents in the cup," Dudley stated, glancing at the table. Two people were playing and people were cheering them on, chanting the name "Ryan" over and over again. "Usually," Dudley continued. "If you aren't wasted before, you're wasted after."

It sounded like a fun game. Dudley got pulled away from her, leaving her standing by herself as she sipped from the red cup. It tasted better, almost fruity, and she wondered what it was. As she watched him get pulled towards the beer pong table, she failed to notice someone come up beside her.

"So, you fancy a dance, then?" She turned to see a rather handsome young man with a matching red cup, giving her his partial attention. She glanced around them. The people that were dancing seemed to be more jumping than leaping like lords, but she nodded. She downed the rest of her cup before setting it on the table beside her and he grinned wickedly, pulling her towards the pulsing crowd of teenagers. Amidst them, she quickly fell into a rhythm and sort of lost herself in the 'dance.' She rubbed herself against him once more for good measure before she began to pull away when he wrapped his arms around her, her back pressing against his chest, feeling how much he wanted her.

It made her as uncomfortable as Piers did. He didn't grope her or anything, as they continued to dance against one another, but she didn't want to give him the wrong idea. Soon his head dropped to her neck and she gasped in surprise as he began to kiss along it, both of them stopping her dance as this guy, whose name she didn't even know, continued to suck along her pulse point. Merlin, Muggles were wicked at this stuff.

"I think the spare room's still open," the guy murmured in her ear.

She tilted her head to the side, her eyes fluttering in pleasure. His hands, which had been resting on her hips, began to drift lower. "I'm pretty sure we're not going to the spare room," she returned.

He chuckled, making her throat vibrate. "I'll kick them out-" His fingers drifted to the edge of her dress and slowly, as if it were a snail, he began to pull it up slightly, so the hem line was a bit more revealing than Aquila was used to. It was already a short dress. Her hands grabbed his suddenly and pulled them off of her. She turned to face him, giving him a flirty smile.

"I think it's best we not." She trailed her fingers down his chest. "I have a beer pong match to play soon. It sounds like fun."

"I'll cheer for you. If you win, maybe the bedroom?"

She giggled and leaned up in her heels until her lips barely touched his. He tried to kiss her, but she stayed just inches away. "No. I'm not sleeping with you."

She fell back on her heels and turned away from him, spotting Dudley as he glanced hastily away from her. Just as she was about to reach him, Natalie appeared out of nowhere. "There you are! You're on. Let's win this game!"

"Oh, I was just-" she started to say as Dudley glanced at her. They made eye contact, but Natalie grabbed Aquila's arm and dragged her to the table against her will. "Now, Dennis, this is Ella. She's new here. Go easy on her, okay? She's playing for me."

Aquila glanced at Dennis at the other end of the table and he winked at her. "Ella, baby. I think they forgot to tell you, I'm the beer pong champion. Never lost."

Aquila laughed. "That's about to change, Dennis. You see, at my school, I'm the party queen. So I'm pretty sure I have this in the bag."

The crowd seem to get larger as they all cheered. She picked up the ball - being granted the first move - and mimicked what she saw the pair earlier do. It bounced off the table and landed gracefully in the closest cup to her, the tip of the pyramid. Everyone cheered and Dennis downed the drink before pulling the ball out and flicking it across the table, making it land into her own cup. She smirked, downing the drink and tossing it to the side before she threw the ball towards him once more.

"Come on, Ella!" Natalie cried. It landed in the second cup, on the second row of the pyramid. Aquila had a goal to go in order, so that each cup would be torn down like a ten-pin game.

By the time Aquila got the fifth cup in a row, and Dennis had done the same to her - though his selection was messy and not at all in order like her - just about everyone in the party was gathered around. She could see Dudley just in her peripheral vision, laughing as Dennis had to drink yet another cup. His sixth. He threw the cup aside angrily and tossed the ball, getting it in one of her cups. She downed it without a second thought and plucked the ball out, staring at his cups. They were a little blurry, but her years of Quidditch were on her side and if she could hit a bludger in the middle of a snow storm, or hail, or a lightning storm, she sure as hell could win this game.

She tossed and it got in. It was back and forth back and forth until there was just one cup left. Everyone held their breath as Aquila tossed. She was dizzy and her eyes were feeling severely unfocused, but by the gasps and then the roar, she knew she got it in. She watched as Dennis downed the drink and people began to congratulate her. "Wait, wait," Aquila insisted. "Let's see if he can make it in my cup."

"Ooooo," people began to laugh and she waited patiently as Dennis staggered to retrieve the ball and then he bounced it, missing by a wide margin. Aquila shrugged and picked up the cup anyway, downing it before she slammed it down against the table.

"I win," she stated simply.

"Fuck, girl, how in the world did you do that?" Natalie's voice sounded. "You went in order!"

"I'm a bit of a science geek at school," Aquila winked, stumbling slightly in her heels as she took a few steps. "Woah, that was not a good idea. Why did I let Dudley pick heels for me?" She stumbled again and caught the edge of the table to keep her upright. She giggled. "I have absolutely no balance." Natalie laughed too. "You win the tequila."

Aquila groaned. "No way, you can have it. I'm not going to ever drink it."

"You sure?" Natalie asked. "You aren't going to be sick, are you?"

"I can hold liquor," Aquila insisted. She stumbled again and laughed. "Okay, walking home in heels is definitely not an option."

Dudley appeared suddenly. "Do you want to head home?"

"If you want to stay-" Aquila started.

"Everyone's leaving anyway," Natalie shrugged. "Amber and I are heading back, so we can give you a ride, if you'd like."

"Thanks," Dudley said. He laughed as Aquila struggled to walk again. Finally she just sat on the grass and pulled her heels off of her feet, before holding up a hand to him. He helped her back up and she clutched her heels in her other hand before walking with more grace towards the house.

"Thank you," Aquila told him as they entered the flat ground.

"No problem. I'm not letting you fall flat on your face."

She laughed, "No, I meant taking me to the party." She leaned against him, giggling slightly. "I haven't had this much fun in... Gosh, it's been a while."

"Well I had fun too," he admitted. "I didn't know how good you were at beer pong."

"I've never played!" she admitted. "Did I ever tell you that? Not once. I didn't even know what was in the cups. What even is beer? Is it like a mix between a deer and a buck?" Dudley laughed at that as he led her out the front door, nodding to Piers. Aquila giggled as well, waving to him haphazardly and nearly knocking Natalie in the head as she carried the large liquor bottle to her car. Dudley opened the back door and Aquila slid inside. Dudley following. "Because I'm pretty sure they could come up with a better name besides beer. What about duck?" She giggled. "Wait, that already exists."

"You okay to drive?" Dudley asked Amber.

Amber nodded. "I've only had one shot, and that was when the party started."

"That was a short party," Aquila admitted. "Is it always so short?"

"It's been about three hours," Dudley told her. "You danced for about two and that game lasted a while."

"Woah," Aquila murmured.

"Don't you dare get sick in my car," Natalie threatened, the large bottle on her lap in the front seat. "I do not want to explain that to my parents."

Aquila giggled, leaning against Dudley's side as she felt extremely tired. It couldn't have been late, but she was exhausted from dancing for so long, and her legs hurt. "Wake me up when we get there," she murmured. She never heard a response because the world grew dark and her head rested against Dudley's shoulder as the car started to life. She had never been in one of the contraptions before, but she was too pissed to care at the moment.

She awoke to the sound of a door opening and groaned slightly. "We've officially arrived," Dudley stated.

She blinked and refocused and found that she was on a doorstep and Dudley was opening the door. "Whose hous-"

"Stay the night at mine. No funny business, I promise," Dudley insisted, stepping through the door. "Mum and Dad won't mind."

"I'll just crash on the couch or something," she murmured as they entered the foyer and just then she realized that he was carrying her.

"No can do," Dudley stated. "I'm sleeping on the couch."

A part of her brain realized that the couches were much too small to have a person sleep on, but he carried her up the stairs as though she was nothing. "Why are you carrying me?" she whispered. "I can walk."

"You're about to pass out. I've got it."

"You're strong," she murmured, giggling slightly. He chuckled. "Do you play any sports?"

"Rugby," he answered quietly and he opened a door.

She was deposited on a bed and gasped suddenly. "I need paper!"

"Paper?" Dudley asked, confused.

"I need to write a note for my mum," she answered. She tried to roll out of the bed, but Dudley rolled her back so she was laying on her back.

"I'll get it," he insisted, digging around for some. He produced a pen a second later and Aquila quickly wrote two notes, blinking hard and taking extra care to make sure it was legible. "I can barely read that, but okay."

She giggled. "Is Potter awake?"

"Lights on," Dudley answered after a second.

"Tell him to deliver the one to Angelina Johnson first, and then my mum's after his bird's returned." She heard him hesitate and tried to sit up, reaching for the papers. "I'll just-"

"Got it," he insisted. "Sleep, alright?"

She giggled slightly. "Don't sleep on the couch. I'll keep my hands to myself." She scooted over so that he had room to join her. "It's your bed and I'm imposing because I'm drunk."

He hesitated. "I don't know-"

"If it's not okay with your Mum and Dad-" Aquila began.

"Just let's not get frisky."

She giggled in response and turned on her side in the bed, nodding. "I pinky promise."

He chuckled and she pulled the covers over her awkwardly, getting tangled briefly, before figuring it out in her drunken state. She heard him say something quietly across the hall and then there was a silent pause. Footsteps padded towards her as two doors shut and she opened her eyes briefly to see Dudley shed his trousers and dug in a drawer for some pajama bottoms. She shut her eyes quickly as he turned around, feigning sleep as he joined her in the bed.

"Are you asleep?" he muttered. Aquila gave a noncommittal moan and shifted slightly, smirking as he pulled the covers up over him. "Night, Ella."

"Night, Dudley," she murmured. She took in a deep breath, still smelling his cologne on his body. It was fresh and something that she wished she had noticed before she had gotten drunk. It smelt nice... really nice. "You smell good," she blurted.

He chuckled. "Go to sleep."

"Aye, aye, Captain," she murmured. And she was awake no more.


	5. Chapter 5

She sighed in content as the sun flitted across her face. A heavy arm was around her middle and holding flush against a body, giving her a sense of protection. Merlin, and her head hurt. The events of last night rushed forward and she quickly concluded who was spooning her. Dudley. Merlin, her mother was going to _kill _her. The notes she had written in the wee hours of the night hopefully reached who they needed to, and since Angelina Johnson did live in Surrey, she knew her mother would hopefully believe that story. Doubtful, but at least she wasn't the type of mother to go knocking on every door in order to find her daughter.

She, at least, trusted Aquila to make it back home where she would be reprimanded.

Dudley wasn't awake, she could tell by a quiet snore that left his body. Not loud or obnoxious by any means - it certainly hadn't woken her. His breath fanned across her shoulder, warm, yet giving her goosebumps at the same time. As she shifted to get into a more comfortable position, she felt ... well, just how a male reacted when they were in a compromising position with a girl. It was impressive. Not something to write _The Prophet_ about but certainly a destined satisfier.

But she had to go to the loo to pee. But then again, she didn't want to run into Petunia or Vernon... or Harry. They'd think that the two of them had gotten into something and... well, she didn't want them to hate her. She wiggled again and Dudley groaned, his arm tightening around her. She could feel his other arm move under the pillow under her head. Okay, so she was going to have to wake him, then.

"Dudley," she hissed quietly. She didn't want to be too loud. "Dudley-"

"What?" he muttered, burying his forehead against her shoulder, breathing in the scent of her shampoo. She could still smell it herself.

"I need to use the loo-"

"Bloody hell!" he gasped, and immediately he pulled away from her, falling out of the bed and taking the blankets with him. She flushed and hurriedly pulled her dress down from where it had ridden up while she slept. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"It's fine," she waved him off, standing. "Was pleasant, actually." She bit her lip uncertainly though as Dudley seemed to refuse to move from the ground. "Um, your parents are still here, yeah?"

He glanced at the clock on the nightstand before shaking his head. "Church. No need to sneak around."

She glanced at the clock herself, finding that it told her the time in numbers, which was strange. 7:23. It was ridiculously early. How early did they even _leave_ for church. "It's seven in the morning."

"It's a long drive. About a half hour, and they meet some friends for breakfast," he shrugged. "They stopped making me go once I started secondary school."

"Oh," she murmured. She'd never been to church. She didn't even know what religion Muggles worshipped. Was it those people in the telly's? Katie Bell, a Gryffindor in her year, had Aquila stay over once and her father did nothing but sit in front of the telly the entire visit. "Right, be right back, then."

She found the loo with ease and did what she needed to do before glancing at herself in the mirror. Her hair was a bit haphazard, but she smoothed it down carefully before fixing her dress so that it was presentable. On her way out, she nearly ran into the Boy-Who-Lived. "Oh, sorry, Potter," she winced, stepping away from him.

"S'alright," he muttered. "I can't believe you shagged Dudley."

She narrowered her eyes, "We didn't do anything. I was drunk, there was no way I would have even made it to my house because I fell asleep in that device that moves whole groups of people-"

"Cars," Harry informed her.

"Yes, and I went to bed after I scribbled a few notes... Er, thanks for sending those. My owls at Angelina's house since the move, and I haven't got it back yet," Aquila said awkwardly.

"Since when were you friends with her?"

"Girl Quidditch players stick together," she winked. "I'm friends with Katie, Angelina, Alicia, well I was with Cho, and ... well, yeah, basically. Sadly, Slytherin has no girl players, so I can't have that whole united house going, but it's a nice thought." She stepped past him to go to Dudley's room. "My mother didn't write back did she?"

"No. Should she have?"

"She must have been asleep, then," Aquila murmured thoughtfully. "Which means she hasn't noticed I was gone."

"But Hedwig came back without a note."

"Oh," she winced. "Right, well, then I best make this believable."

He tried to ask what she meant but she only entered Dudley's room and shut the door behind her. "Is it custom for everyone in your family to wake early?"

"Only the idiots," he muttered. He was back in the bed, the blankets spread out, staring up a the ceiling. A flush was still on his cheeks. She approached him cautiously and slid back into the empty spot on the other side. "How's your head?"

She grimaced, mimicking his position but with her eyes closed against the sunlight. "Awful. I don't know what you put in beer, but it's foul tasting and ridiculously sloshy feeling."

"It's yeast, that's gone bad, and left in a jug for a few months or something," he admitted.

"That sounds horrendous. Firewhiskey's made from fire of a dragon heating up a vast ... pool, if you will, of tears of merpeople."

"Dragons?" Dudley asked quietly. She hummed in affirmation. He shifted in the bed and muttered a harsh, "Ow!" Her eyes flew open to find him holding up a stick... well, not a stick, her wand. "That's yours."

She giggled, taking it from his hand as he eyed it wearily. "Must have fallen out of my dress," She shrugged. She stared at it a moment before dropping her hand, and letting it rest beside her. "Thanks."

"No problem... All my life, I've been taught magic's weird, you know? I mean, magic is weird, still, but it's not bad, is it?"

"Depends on how it's used," Aquila admitted. "There's some good people in the world. They can save lives with just two words. And then there are bad people. They can use a different two words to end a life in a heartbeat."

"Are you good or bad?" Dudley asked quietly. It was a good question. She was quiet a moment as she considered it, her eyes closing.

"My family's not very good. My mother tried to make things right, going good, but she married a bad guy... who turned good as he died... It's all very complicated. But I come from an ancient family that has always... valued their pride over their sides. Most of their pride rested in the Dark side. Personally..." She turned her head towards him, her eyes opening. He wasn't looking at her, didn't seem to notice, but his eyes were closed and he was almost peaceful looking. "I'm a good person. I want to help people, I want to save lives and... do good things. I hope that makes me a good person. I don't murder or torture."

"Now that last bits a lie," he insisted, a smirk on his face. "You in that dress is torture."

She laughed lightly and soon he joined her. Her light giggles turned into a full out laugh and she shoved his arm lightly. "What about you? Are you good or bad?"

The smile fell from his face and his eyes opened as he stared above him. His jaw tensed and she wondered why. He wasn't a Death Eater. He wasn't a serial killer - well, at least she strongly suspected he wasn't by the posters of sports people on his walls. But then again, serial killers could like sports. There was no law against it - not in the Wizarding World at least. "Well... I'm certainly not a murdering lunatic." He spoke carefully, as if she was a wild animal he would scare away. He spoke like he didn't want to cause a misunderstanding, wording things in a clear way. "I, well, I used to-" He paused. "That's a lie. I bully people a lot. I fight a lot. But I mean, I wouldn't see some three year old kid in the road and punch him in the face or anything. So I'd say... A bad guy that's trying to be good."

"You don't like bullying?" she asked him, her head turning to the ceiling as she thought over what he said.

"It was fun at first. I was little, maybe seven or so. And I liked the... the power it gave me. Kids looked up to me, you know? I liked that. And as the years wore on, well... It wasn't just bullying anymore. As you get older you have a reputation to keep up. Start to slack or do something that doesn't fit what others see you as, you start to lose that power." He glanced at her and she glanced at him in response. "Piers, Dennis, Malcolm... The whole lot has, uh, been apart of this gang clique since grade school. There's no cool kiddie birthday parties anymore, it's parties and drugs and girls and crime and... it's just like a vortex."

"Is that why you hide your intelligence?" She hadn't meant to say it and she quickly backtracked. "I mean, from the moment I met you, I knew you were smart. But Potter doesn't seem to think so, nor does ... well your friends." He gave a shrug. "What is it you really want to do with your education?"

"I'm going to study accounting-"

"Not what your dad wants you to study," Aquila interrupted softly. His eyes didn't waver from hers. "I mean, what do _you_ want to do?"

"I like sports," he stated. "But I don't want to be a professional player or anything. I'm not that good at rugby... It's not really a career, is it?" He winced. "In your world, I guess it is, but here it only lasts a couple of years before you're replaced with a new, younger, and more athletic player." Aquila nodded in agreement. "But I want to be a doctor. Not a surgeon, I have a horrid steady hand, but like a real and proper doctor. Works in hospitals and treats people."

"You've never told your parents this?" she asked quietly. He shrugged. "You should. Can you transfer what you study in those schools of yours? Into something more relavent in what you want to study? I'm sure they must be supportive of you."

"Dad wants me to take over Grunnings, so-"

"Do you want to take over Grunnings?" she questioned.

"Well, no."

Aquila nodded quietly to herself. "Will you ever tell them?"

"Probably not." He paused. "Maybe. Sometimes I think about just blurting it out, sometimes I stop myself just as I'm about to."

"How long have you wanted to be?"

"Since I broke some kids arm when I was thirteen."

She snorted in surprise, immediately regretting it as her head hurt. "Bloody hell... well, if you can cure this headache of mine, I'll start calling you Doc, alright?" He laughed but she groaned at the sound and clutched her head. "Okay, bad idea. Merlin, I need like a potion or something. Potter probably doesn't have any and he's not smart enough to know how to brew it..."

"Well, I don't know about potions, but we have Advil."

Her eyes sprung open. "What's that?"

"I can't believe I'm getting out of bed willingly before it's even noon," he muttered as he rolled out of bed. "Stay there."

She obeyed, curling on her side and burying her face in the pillow. It still smelt of his cologne, which she would admit she was starting to really like. She knew the door was still open, and Potter was probably snooping, but she didn't care. She was almost an adult, for Merlin's sake. She was allowed to do whatever she wanted. If that included sleeping in her neighbor's bed so what? She just couldn't let her mother find out. Simple.

She had almost accidentally drifted off to sleep when she heard footsteps approaching. She opened her eyes and lazily looked over towards the door where Dudley was approaching with a glass of water and a different plastic container that rattled as he tossed it towards her. She caught it immediately, her Quidditch reflexes kicking in. She read the front label carefully and sat up, ignoring the pounding in her head as best she could. She took the glass from him as he sat beside her and tried to figure out what to do.

"What is this?"

"You take two of the pills. It makes your headache go away."

"Is this Muggle medicine?" she asked, fascinated. "And does it actually work?"

"Yeah."

She struggled to get the bottle open, but eventually Dudley stopped laughing at her and took it, opening it with ease. He shook out two pills and passed them to her. She narrowed her eyes at them but eventually put them on her tongue. "They don't dissolve," she said carefully, grimacing as it began to taste bad.

"You swallow them whole," he explained. _Oh_. She did so, and sipped from the water to help them down. She didn't feel any instant relief and she waited a moment, staring off into the distance, as if that would change. "It doesn't happen right away. It takes about a half hour."

"Oh," Aquila murmured. That didn't mean it worked, then. Worked to her meant right away. "Well, then." She sipped from the water again, unsure of what to do with it. Muggle medicine... How did they survive? It was so odd.

"How late can you stay?"

She smirked as she glanced at him. "How late am I allowed to stay?"

He shrugged. "No time, really."

"Well, what are your plans for today?" she asked him, watching him closely. He seemed more comfortable around her than he had been before. She didn't know if it was the fact that she had drunkenly crashed in his bed, or the fact that she had gone to the party with him in the first place, but whatever it was, she was glad to see it.

"I usually sleep in until about one or two on Sundays and then watch telly, so pretty much nothing. Why? Do you have an idea?"

"Well, not really," Aquila admitted. "You can help me fix up my room, if you'd like. You don't have to, of course. I have a few posters and whatnot to put up and I need to paint the walls... But I'm open to other options-"

"That sounds great, actually," Dudley nodded. He paused then and glanced at the clock. "But not before noon?"

"Bloody hell, of course not." She fell back on the bed, holding the glass of water and staring at it as she rested it on her stomach. "I can crash here until noon, right?" she asked hesitantly.

"I would have said otherwise," he replied with a shrug. She knew he would, but she had years and years of her mother's pureblood this and that shoved down her throat. She took her wand from her lap and contemplated a spell to use. "So... how does your... magic stuff... where do you get it from?"

"No idea," she admitted. "No one knows. Some witches and wizards can have children that are born without magic, whereas some Muggles can have children with magic... We tend to believe that all humans once possessed magic, and as time wore on, the amount of magic diminished as squibs were born - er, nonmagical folk from magical parents. And that was how you lot came about. Years and years of squibs marrying squibs until the magical gene ran dormant... Of course, that's only a belief. No proof."

He nodded carefully. "Are you done with that glass?"

"What? Oh, yeah." He took it from her before she could ask where to put it and dropped it on the nightstand beside him. Aquila played with her wand carefully, contemplating what she'd do. "Does it freak you out when I use magic? Like at my house or a few days ago when I cast the impervious charm?"

"Not really... It's hard to see. It sort of looks like a ripple in the air."

"You mean you can't see the sparks?" she asked curiously. She turned on her side abruptly, giving him her full attention. "Just ripples?"

He nodded. "Should I see sparks?"

She frowned, "I suppose not..." He closed his eyes and relaxed into the bed. "Right, well, sleep." But even after he had begun to snore softly, Aquila bringing the blankets back to cover them both, she found she couldn't. She had slept a while, if her calculations were accurate. So she rested her head on the pillow and watched each breath he took. And if she was still long enough, she could _almost_ hear his heart beat. Muggles... they had no idea what sort of threat was bring thrown in front of them. Voldemort was not going to be kind. He'd kill the Dursley family just because of Potter, regardless of if Potter liked them or not. It would still make Potter feel guilty, and if anything could make Potter feel guilty, then he'd be weaker with grief.

She knew she sat there for hours staring at him, thinking and plotting, replotting, and then planning. And then she grew bored with that and began to devise Quidditch strategies, aware that the boy wonder across the hall could potential try to get into her head and steal them. But she doubted he would. He was, after all, not even a fifth year. Dudley turned his body towards her and they were mere inches apart. It felt like electricity between their bodies. Merlin, she barely knew the guy. Her eyes stared at his own, despite his being shut, and she just watched him quietly, as she had been doing. Aquila hesitantly lifted her hand to touch the chain that was hanging from his neck. She was careful not to wake him as she turned it so that she could read what it said.

But it was just a bunch of numbers. Was this some Muggle form of identification? She had no idea. Petunia didn't wear any, and from what she could tell, neither did Vernon. Perhaps it was just a piece of jewelery? She went to drop it his large frame moved closer to her until his arm was firmly around her waist, pulling her face into his chest. She knew he was probably exhausted - how much sleep did he have the night before? She could have sworn it was only around ten or eleven when they left the party. And it was nearly ten now. Twelve hours of sleep? Unless he stayed up last night while she was sleeping. She didn't know... Merlin's beard, he was holding her, and she was allowing it.

The last time she had been in this situation... well, Cedric was just announced as the Triwizard Champion for Hogwarts, and he had snuck her into the Hufflepuff dormitory. For Hufflepuff's being loyal, he certainly wasn't. How many times had he slept with Chang? She didn't even bother to ask. She knew, because Cho Chang would sneak out some nights to no doubt see him. How dare she betray her friend like that? How dare Cedric betray Aquila? How dare either of them betray her. Cedric at least could have had the decency to break up with her first, but no.

She didn't know how long she was being held by Dudley, but when he finally awoke, she pretended to be asleep. He slowly retracted himself from her, muttering under his breath. "Sorry, sorry-" It would have been amusing, but she fought the smile from appearing on her face. When he was finally detachted from her, her fingers slid from his chain and he rose from the bed. She heard him leave and wondered if he was just going to leave her to wake up on her own, but she heard the shower running and when he was back, it was after the shower had cut off, and a fresh scent permeated through the room. She opened her eyes when she was sure he was decent and sat up in the bed. Glancing at the clock, she noticed the time was perfect for her to head home and claim a sleepover.

Dudley raised an eyebrow as she climbed out and raised her wand to her dress. His jaw dropped as it began to transfigure into something more modest - a pair of jeans and a t-shirt. She fluffed her hair, using her fingers to comb it through, and shrugged at him. "The dress was too fancy for my mother to believe."

"Right," he murmured. He drew his eyes away from her and played with his hair. She noticed the chain sticking out from his shirt, the same chain as before. It was wet. Did that mean he didn't take it off? Odd.

"That chain on your neck," she said as she sat on the edge of his bed, using her wand to make it. "Is that sort of like an identification card?"

"Er, sort of," he admitted carefully, as if it was a touchy subject. "It was my Uncle's. He and I were close."

She sensed that this Uncle was no longer around. "Oh."

She strummed her fingers along her knees as he did a few things that seemed to be a daily practice, before she watched him face her. "Want lunch?"

She hesitated. "I don't want to-"

"Potter!" he barked into the hall with a quick smirk her way. "What's for lunch!?"

She smiled at that and stood from her seat, following Dudley down the stairs to the kitchen, where Potter was banging around. He cooked? "Do you want help?" Aquila offered. "I don't know how to make much, but-"

"Er, yeah, sure," Harry blinked in surprise. No one helped him? Aquila smiled brightly and cracked a few eggs onto an already sizzling pan.

"Breakfast for lunch, Potter?"

"Well, you did just get up," he defended. Aquila laughed quietly and did as he instructed, making casual conversation she was sure to include Dudley in on. "Erm, well, there were apparation sounds about an hour ago, I'd say." Aquila looked to him in surprise. "They went to your house."

"Probably a friend of my mother's," Aquila admitted quietly. "Maybe some Ministry officially that's insisting upon my marriage to his eldest son, heir to the fortune of Blah and House of No-One-Cares. The Ancient and Noble House of Black would be most honored to marry the house of No-One-Cares and the House of Black would be most delighted to inform Aquila that her marriage must result in a successful production of an heir by the second anniversary," she scowled bitterly. She flipped the bacon with more force than neccessary. "Ugh, honestly, I should just elope and watch her stroke out from the surprise. No doubt Ev's already done that."

She turned off the stove once the bacon was done and Potter moved to plate it as she wiped off a few grease burns on her wrist. She grimaced at them as they burned, but it wasn't that bad of pain. She got worse in Quidditch. She glanced at Dudley, "I loathe marriage, just so you know. I don't know if Potter already does know that about me, but it's entirely unneccesary in the Wizarding World. I've seen how broken my mother was after dad died, and I refuse to get that close to someone." She smirked as she glanced down at a plate Potter passed to her. Food. "I already made that mistake once and it hurts more than I'd care to admit. Love is pain and pain is Quidditch. Therefore my one and only true love will remain Quidditch."

Potter laughed. "We should fly sometime."

Aquila frowned as she sat at the table. "Can't. My broom's been locked up and heavily warded."

Potter winced. "Really?"

"As well as all potion ingredients and whatnot."

They ate quickly, avoiding the topic of magic, and Dudley explained to her what Rugby was, before she offered to do dishes and she did them. "You still want me to help paint your room?" Dudley asked.

She grinned, "Sure, Doc." He snorted at the unexpected nickname. "Well, you did make my hangover go away. And if Mum has a guest, well, she can't blow up about me not coming home last night." She glanced at Potter. "What are you up to, today?"

"Potions essay."

She wrinkled her nose. "Have fun, then."

Dudley followed her and she giggled as they reached the sunshined street. "If we run into my mum, you're helping me on a Muggle Studies project."

"A what?"

She winked at him, "Muggle Studies. It's a class. Can you tell me the distinct purpose of a toaster?"

"Er, yeah, that's easy."

"And what about a television?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Then she'll believe it," Aquila smiled at him. He was confused, but she opened up the front door and blinked in surprise at the dark skinned woman sitting on the couch uncomfortably. "What are you doing here?" She pulled Dudley in and shut the door.

"Who's this?" The woman smiled, looking over the boy. "Moving on so fast?"

"This is Dudley," Aquila said carefully. "He lives down the road. He's helping on a Muggle Studies project."

"Some project," Angelina Johnson agreed. "That's why you left my house early this morning and had to retrieve him, hmm?"

"Of course, Ange," Aquila winked. "We're going to decorate my room. Join us? Dudley, this is Angelina Johnson. I spent the night at her house last night." As the smile lit up Aquila's face, Angelina laughed and shook her head.

"Him?"

"Like I said, Muggle Studies," Aquila laughed. She led the both of them up to her room. "You know, Potter lives nearby, right?" Aquila called back to the woman. "You could like talk Quidditch strategy or something."

"I have to think of strategy first, any tips?"

"Sod off, Johnson." Her mother's door flew open as she got to the top of the stairs and Aquila faltered slightly. "Um, I mean, please, Angelina, would you make yourself at home?"

"Last minute- If you went to that party-" Her mother began.

Aquila gave a heart-warming smile. "Of course not, mother. You told me not to go. I went to Angelina's instead and we just talked about school and did a few projects-"

"You know it's dangerous to travel."

"My parents have strong wards up, Mrs. Black," Angelina said easily. "And our land has enchantments from the founding of our house-"

"Very well," Euryale said stiffly. Her eyes flittered to Dudley. "You-"

"Muggle studies project," Aquila said quickly, grabbing Dudley's arm and pulling him into her room. She slammed it as soon as Angelina followed and locked it, letting the seventh year put a strong ward up. "Bloody hell."

Angelina laughed brilliantly and glanced at Dudley, who looked a bit uncomfortable. "How was that party then?"

"I learned a new game for our own parties," Aquila informed her.

"Yeah, she's actually pretty wicked at it," Dudley said hesitantly. Angelina grinned. "We aren't going to paint your room, are we?"

Aquila snorted and opened up the trunk at the foot of her bed. It was empty, all her magical items stored in another trunk in the cupboard under the stairs. But she waved her wand to remove a glamour and Angelina whistled as she saw the steady supply of firewhiskey. "Where did you get this?" she asked the owner. Aquila passed her a bottle and glanced at Dudley.

"Want to try wizard alcohol?" she asked. "Or are you alcohol'd out?"

He took the bottle from her and read the label. "Firewhiskey?"

"Burns on the way down, but does wicked things for your head. No drinking, there's always just pretending we're up to no good to piss of Mum." Aquila glanced at Angelina and winked. "Kinky stuff and what not. Us Quidditch players can be really limber."

"Drinkings good," Dudley admitted.

"That's the spirit," Angelina grinned. "I quite like this one. Where did you pick him up?"

"He helped me move in," Aquila shrugged, shutting her trunk once she placed the glamours back on and broke the seal, sipping from it with a slight grimace. "I say we get pissed, and Angelina can inform me why she's here in the first place." It was agreed and Aquila took satisfaction in the fact that he didn't sputter when he drank from his own bottle, but instead seemed to be intrigued by the unexpected burn of the alcohol.

"Is this the stuff that was made by dragon flames and mermaid tears or something?" Dudley asked. She grinned at him pleasantly, sitting beside him on her bed. Yes, he was an intelligent one, wasn't he?


	6. Chapter 6

Aquila giggled as she collapsed on her bed, Angelina a fit of giggles herself, and Dudley was slurring rather horribly. As Aquila calmed down, she watched Dudley carefully. He seemed rather comfortable. He was sitting on her trunk, Angelina on the ground, and Aquila sprawled across her bed. And he seemed... happy.

A sharp knock on the door caused Aquila to jerk, but giggle helplessly.

"Aquila, what are you doing in there?"

Aquila quickly flicked her wand to the two occupants and they were instantly sober, the three bottles burying themselves under the bed. Aquila flicked her wand so the door could open and Euryale walked in suspiciously. She eyed Dudley distastefully before glancing at Angelina. "Just talking about the World Cup. Angelina's wicked excited. She reminded me of last year with the Leperchaun gold."

"You know it's dangerous-"

"We've had these tickets for nine months, Mrs. Black!" Angelina protested. "Aquila has to come! I can't go with George alone! I don't trust my actions alone with him. Aquila will at least keep things professional."

"I don't like the idea of you camping out... You know what happened last year."

Aquila glanced at Dudley, sighing. "Death Eaters won't attack two years in a row. The Ministry will place extra protections. Besides, it's not the _World_ Cup, it's just the British Isles finals. Ireland and Wales!" She surged forward on her bed so that she was kneeling, facing her mother. "I need to get Quigley and Connolly's autographs on my bat. And I need Aidan Lynch to sign my jersey! Mum, I have to go. That entire team is entirely Ravenclaw! It's basically my team-"

"Then I'll accompany-"

"My parents will be going with us," Angelina Johnson began, knowing Aquila's mother hated her parents. "They're going to be charming the tent so only we can enter. And we'll have wards on top of the Ministry's wards-"

Euryale pursed her lips. "Who else is going?"

"Well..." Angelina seemed uneasy. She glanced at Aquila. "Cedric was going to go, with Amos and Miranda Diggory, but... but I don't think that's going to happen." Obviously. "George and Fred Weasley, Alicia Spinnet, me, my parents, Aquila."

"Seven. That's a large party. And only two adults?"

"George, Fred, and I will be of age as well. So five."

Euryale wasn't convinced. "I expect a very lengthy discussion later, Aquila."

Aquila nodded and glanced at Dudley. "Leave the door open."

Aquila sighed as her mother stormed away and she gave an apologetic smile to Dudley. "So, my room." He chuckled as Aquila grabbed the bottles from under her bed and distributed them before she moved towards the last box in her room. Paint and posters. She rummaged in it before sipping her firewhiskey. And then cracked open a paint can. "You might want to duck, mate," she heard Angelina say just as Aquila flicked her wand. The paint flew out of the can and lathered the walls in a thin coat, covering the ugly and yellowing wall paper. She cast a drying charm before unrolling some posters and sticking it to the walls.

"They_ move_," Dudley murmured in fascination as he eyed the Quidditch posters. The largest poster, of the Irish Quidditch team, was racing around the insignia. Aidan Lynch, with his perfect smile and his shaggy black hair was gorgeous, floating in the middle of the poster as his team flew behind him. Dudley seemed to look at it a little longer than necessary.

"That's Aidan Lynch. Ireland's best seeker!" Aquila said excitedly, leaping off the bed to approach the poster. Dudley followed while Angelina stayed on the floor, nursing the bottle as she drank from it again. "He graduated my third year. He taught me everything I needed to know about flying. Best bloody bloke in the school. He's a seeker, meaning he has the most important role in the pitch. He has to catch this little flying ball, the snitch. It's worth a hundred and fifty points. The team with the most points, when the snitch is caught, wins." She took his arm and pulled him to another poster. Beaters. "Connolly and Quigley. They graduated my first year, so I never got to play on a team with them, but they're spectacular. They play beater on Ireland's team. That's my position. You have to hit these balls-" she pointed to the rogue bludgers that were swirling around the back of the poster as Connolly and Quigley, "-with these bats. They're an amazing team."

"Aidan's like every girl's wet dream," Angelina sighed. "I'd totally try to go for him, if George wasn't my boyfriend. Second year, we won with him and Fred's talent alone. We stood no chance with Charlie down for a while. Against you 'claws, it was brutal. Had to knock out the whole team."

Aquila laughed, "I remember that match. Didn't Charlie get dragon pox or something from his dragon internship that Christmas break?"

"Bloody horrible," Angelina muttered. "You guys are lucky even your reserves have brains. You guys have the tactic. We have pure talent."

"Talent?" Aquila barked out a laugh. "More like foolish risks." She pointed to another poster. "That's Barry Ryan, Keeper. He guards the goals. Wicked fast. No one's faster. Not even Wood."

"Wood?" Dudley repeated.

"Barking mad captain of Gryffindor a few years ago." She glanced at Angelina who gave out a mournful sigh. "Angelina was absolutely drooling over him. He never took notice. He's so focused on the game that girls are a second thought." She giggled and pointed to the last poster, the widest, but also the smallest. It had the three Chasers side by side. "Mullet, Troy, and Moran. Absolutely deadly chasers. They almost killed that Ugandan player about five years ago. And that was purely accidental!" Her fingers traced the last thing hung on her wall. The Irish jersey. It was signed by everyone but Lynch. "I went to their match a few months ago, during Easter holidays, and Lynch was knocked out cold before I could get an autograph. The rest of them signed it, though. And Lynch owes me a favor."

"Oh?" Dudley asked.

"Yeah, I introduced him to this Muggle girl I met a few years ago," Aquila shrugged. "They dated for a while, almost engaged, but she was fascinated with his gold, and dumped him, taking half of his salary for a year in gold and gifts with her. So he was upset." She shrugged again. "I also got him in touch with the Ireland's team manager, so he owes me for that too. A signature would be nothing."

"Muggles can date your kind?" Dudley asked, surprised.

"Yeah," she said like it was obvious. "We're all humans. It's not like we're incompatable. It's just the matter of secrecy, but the Ministry grants vows with Muggles if things are serious. And once they break up, depending on the character of the person, they're more often than not obliviated, so they don't remember the wizarding world at all, just the person." She shrugged, glancing back at Angelina. "It's not uncommon, but it's not something that happens everyday, right, Ang?"

"My uncle married a Muggle," Angelina put in. "Total surprise to the entire family. We thought the girl was completely magical until the wedding. Of course, the family can't know, but the bloke can." She giggled. "That was a surprise when my grandma accidentally put out a fire with magic and we had to obliviate all the witnesses."

"Oh," he seemed unsure of what to say.

"Well, anyway, yeah. So if it works out, the Muggle's fine. Not, well, it depends." Aquila shifted uncomfortably. "On a happier note-"

"But are the kids like... I don't know... magical?"

"Magic gene's dominant," Angelina input. "The kids are always magical. There's the odd ball that's a squib but-"

"Squib?"

"Nonmagical person, sorry. They come from magical parents," Angelina admitted. "Anyway, there's always that chance, but there's that chance with anyone. My parents both had Squib siblings, but they were killed in the first war by some Death Eaters."

"And the Death Eaters are the bad guys."

"Hun, they'd kill you if they had the chance," Angelina admitted before giggling. "They don't even have to know you. Hell, if you've ever seen the _Prophet_, our newspaper, you'd be surprised how many Muggles they have access to in a day."

"What do you mean?"

Aquila moved past him, shouting into the hall. "Mother, where's the _Prophet_. I want to see the Quidditch scores from yesterday!"

"You couldn't do that at Angelina's?" her mother shot back.

"Her parents don't get the Prophet. It's full of sh-crap!"

Angelina laughed loudly, covering up Aquila's almost slip. Yes, her mother would not take kindly to that. "On my nighstand!" Her mother called.

"Thanks."

Aquila quickly retrieved it and was surprised when she returned and flipped it open. The front cover was covered in reports of Muggles. "It has only been a month since he's come back," she informed Dudley as he got closer to look. She pointed to the center article. "Five in Bristol." Another. "Seven in Liverpool." Another. "Fifteen in London." She pointed to another further down the page. "Eight in Leeds." And the last. "Twenty three in Dublin. Whole apartment complex."

"How come we don't notice this stuff?" Dudley asked. "I mean, don't you think we'd notice these?"

"They're so well done that nothing can be thought of them. So far apart it can't be considered organized by your world." She turned the page and Cedric's eyes were there. She faltered slightly, seeing Amos crying over his son. The TriWizard Tournament. "But when we found out he was back, we started to up our, uh, police patrols. The Aurors tracked them but we can never get there in time. It's more difficult to save them than to find them. Death Eaters are discreet. We have wizard folk - mostly people that are growing up in the Muggle world - working in the police departments and Muggle Ministry. They can cover things up." She gently touched the article with Cedric's face on it, almost as if she was remembering something, but she was just trying to get rid of the image of his dead body. "That's Cedric. Too hot for any girl to properly handle. I certainly couldn't." She paused, wondering if Dudley was going to ask any other questions, but he didn't. He seemed to be letting her have her time. She moved to the next article. "And there's Potter. Look at him, so... happy for his win." He didn't look happy in the slightest. He was still mourning over Cedric's body, the press giving no time for him to grieve.

"Were they close?" Dudley asked. Aquila vaguely noticed that Angelina had gone silent, probably still thinking of the boy that had been just a year above her. They were no doubt close, as Aquila took him to Quidditch parties and they were often in matches together.

"Harry and him? Nah." She lightly touched the article, reading briefly about how Harry was possibly responsible for his death. That he was lying. "He and Cedric did the ... the noble thing." He seemed confused by that, but didn't speak. "There's this cup that he has to get to win. Any of the champions do, really. And well, Viktor Krum and Fleur Delacour were eliminated from the task, so to speak... it was just Cedric and Potter so they grabbed the cup together." She paused. "It was a portkey, I guess. That's all I could hear Potter shouting once they came back. Eventually the rumor mill got around and I found out that they were teleported to this graveyard... This rat killed Cedric and-"

"A rat?"

"Er, we can transform into animals, if we're trained enough," Aquila explained. "This guy was the same guy that killed Potter's parents. Well, not the same, but apparently the same guy that caused Potter's parents to die. So... he killed Cedric and Potter just managed to bring the body back... Somehow Cedric asked him to. To bring it back to Amos and Miranda, his parents."

"How can he ask...?"

"Ghosts," Angelina said carefully. "You know, like the whole soul lingers behind. But apparently only for a second. His soul departed from the world. That was his unfinished business."

"That must have been hard," Dudley said quietly.

Aquila shrugged and turned the page, glad it was over. "They bonded, Potter and him. I guess going into life or death situations does that." She was silent a moment as she skimmed the _P__rophet_. Nothing of too much importance. She paused over the article of Aidan Lynch. Single again. "Oi, Angelina, if you're willing to dump George, Aidan's single and ready to mingle."

"No way!" Angelina cried. She hopped up off the floor and appeared on Dudley's other side. Aidan's smiling face appeared as Dudley shifted out of her line of view. Yes, Aidan was single. "Look at this! He says some Hogwarts friends are coming to the match and he hopes to reconnect with them! That's got to be us!"

"I'm not sleeping with Aidan," Aquila said simply. "He's like... a friend, if that. I mean, totally idolize him, but I'm not looking to reconnect with him in that way. And you're practically married to George. Don't you think, oh, I don't know, he'd not like this?"

"George knows I love him," Angelina murmured. She finished reading the article before Aquila turned the page.

"So yeah, the, uh, pictures move if you haven't noticed."

"Oh, I've noticed. How?"

"Magic," Aquila grinned towards him. He chuckled and sipped from the bottle in his hand. When she reached the gossip section she scowled and quickly flipped it over. "My mother's favorite section - gossip. She wants any blackmail she can get."

"Oh." He swallowed in fear, though he had no reason to be afraid. It wasn't like he was a bad person. And Aquila already knew he bullied. Hell, everyone bullied. She finally reached the Quidditch scores.

"Fucking hell, Poland lost to Bulgaria again. Means that it'll probably be Ireland and Bulgaria again," Aquila groaned. "No way."

"Bulgaria team's good?"

"Best," Angelina commented. "Viktor Krum, their seeker, about killed Lynch in the match last year. They're bloody beasts out there. Aq, you still got the Bulgarian posters in your trunk-?"

"Yes, but when I was forced to choose who would win last year, I couldn't just hang them both up. That's like treason to Ireland-"

"Do you just have national teams?" Dudley asked.

Aquila shook her head, pointing to the bottom of the page. "Yes, but it's almost training season again, so the matches are just ending for the year. Usually cities end around the beginning of June but Holyhead Harpies, Chudley Cannons, and Puddlemere United just finished some charty matches against minor league teams." She grinned at him. "Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor captain that was absolutely obsessed with Quidditch, plays keeper for Puddlemere now. Positions for pro quidditch careers are always open. I would love to play for Ireland one day." She glanced back at the scores, blushing. "But that's not going to happen, so... Puddlemere's won the European Cup twice, and Jocelind Wadcock has the highest number of goals ever scored - Chaser, she is. Ireland and Puddlemere are basically the best teams to ever grace the air with their brooms." She blushed when she caught him looking at her. "You probably have no idea what I'm talking about and are amazingly bored right now."

"No, I'm actually interested," he admitted. "Potter doesn't talk about your world at all... Dad's never liked hearing about it."

"Oh, well, okay..." She glanced at Angelina, who was grinning at the younger teen. "Um, well, try outs for the year are during the end of the July, so basically this month. They're open to the public but I need a good excuse to go, because mum hates it when I do. Basically, it's every amazing Quidditch player ever going to one big pitch for an entire week trial. And they do runs and people bet on where they'll end up. It's usually no retrys for professional positions unless you want a different spot or you seriously mess up and are in danger of being replaced. Once you're on the team, though, it's really hard to be kicked off. You have to be dedicated."

"Aquila here is so obsessed with Quidditch," Angelina input. "So if you have no idea what she's talking about, it's usually because of that. She was the only one of her house to attend the Hufflepuff Slytherin game. Everyone knew Slytherin would win, but she still watched that match like it was unpredictable."

"It's a bit embarrassing, really," Aquila admitted. "I can't seem to shut up about it. It's really bad." She shot Angelina a glare. "As I was saying, it's hard to get kicked off. And once you're on, you're basically on until you retire. On the Italian team, there's a fifty seven year old man that plays beater. Wicked arm. And he's going again on the team next season. And Viktor Krum, seeker on the Bulgarian team, he was sixteen when he began to plan on the team. He's only eighteen now. No real age requirement, really. Just skill." She shut the _Prophet_ shut and smacked at Angelina's arm as she tried to find Aidan Lynch's picture. "Hell, Ang, you're like a randy bunny. Stop that."

"I haven't seen George since school got out."

"Then why are you here? Go see him!" Aquila shooed.

"After I get your Krum poster out. Merlin, you should have gone to the ball with him last year."

"He asked Hermione Granger," Aquila insisted. "And Hermione was absolutely stunning. Merlin, she really is gorgeous, but she hides it so well when she does absolutely nothing to herself. I think the entire school wanted her then. Krum showed Weasley and Potter what they always are missing." She glanced at Dudley. "Besides, I'm sure Dudley doesn't want to see the poster of Viktor last year."

"You got it signed!" Angelina insisted, heading for the closet. "And you were the only semi-normal fan that approached him, that's why he actually hung out with you last year." Angelina glanced over her shoulder. "Viktor and a few of his buddies, as well as a French Wizarding school, came to Hogwarts for that tournament. All the guys went barmy for Viktor. He caught the snitch in the World Cup. It's not every day. And since Aquila is so well connected to the world of Quidditch, he had heard of her through Aidan and well..." She presented a poster, unrolling it. Signed and a long note that took up a small section of the poster. "They became good friends."

"He's, uh... rather rough looking, isn't he?" Dudley asked.

"Muscled," Aquila corrected. "But completely daft. Not a single brain cell he can rub together. All he knows is Quidditch - can't even add. That's why they lost the World Cup, because he caught the Snitch too soon." She glanced at the poster. "I talk Quidditch with him, that's it. Honestly, Ang, you make it sound like something he's not. And he's dating Hermione, so-"

"You need to find a boyfriend. We all know Diggory cheated on you with Chang. But she's not invited to the parties, is she? We know what she did and she knows it too. She was your best friend and she just stomped all over that trust." Angelina rolled up the poster carefully. "She's a right backstabber and I hope she realizes it and apologizes. But you really need to start dating again. You don't want to be shipped off somewhere, do you?"

Aquila wrinkled her nose, taking the poster from her friend angrily. "It's already happening. Italy. Joyous, isn't it?" Aquila stormed to her closet and threw the poster back in the box after making sure it wasn't damaged.

"What?" Angelina gasped. "Since when?"

Aquila turned and her eyes met Angelina's dark ones, seeing them shocked and almost taken aback. "Since Diggory, when do you think? A single girl can't be single too long according to my mother. Off to marry the first person that puts up as many galleons as it takes for my mother to get a new wardrobe."

"I'm sorry, I didn't-"

"Know, I know," Aquila sighed. She glanced at Dudley. "This is about the eighth time you've heard me talk about this. Sorry."

He shrugged. "It's stupid, yeah. I'd rant about it a lot more if I were you."

She smiled at him and he smiled back timidly. It was pleasant. Something he needed to do more often. "But she can't do that!" Angelina protested. "That's so middle ages!"

"I'm aware," Aquila sighed again. Leaning against the dry wall, she crossed her arms. "I don't know, she's talking about Blaise Zabini's cousin, Marcello, but I've seen pictures and I'm not spending the rest of my life with that."

"But you can opt out, right?" Angelina insisted. "Like, refuse to marry."

"Women get no say in their marriage contract, Aquila. That's how it was for your father and I, and I learned to love him very much. That's how it will be for you and your husband," Aquila mocked, rolling her eyes. "Oh, don't forget, Aquila, there's another family if Marcello doesn't want you. Nice family, very rich. They'll make you happy until your gradchildren are gray." She glanced at Dudley to see his brow furrow. "Oh, my favorite one, really. Aquila Cassiopeia Black, don't you dare think about joining that team. Your husband expects you to stay at home and you give him many babies. I don't want this Black line dying out, and since your brother can't be contacted, you're the last hope. That Tonks girl, nice girl, is interested in that werewolf and eugh-" Aquila mimicked a disgusted expression. "And Draco Malfoy. Oh, Aquila, you really must have a respectable marriage. It's only proper."

"But you can't! Quidditch! That's been your dream since you were two! Your _dad_ taught you how to fly. He wanted you to fly the rest of your life." Aquila looked at Angelina, shrugging. "I refuse to let you just give up that talent! You're going to be captain this year! You can't just-It's your dream!"

"Yeah, well, my dream isn't going to come true," Aquila said carefully.

"As a concerned friend..." Angelina winced slightly. "You're always more than welcome to come to my place, if you want? Run away-"

"And disinherit anything I'll gain in my dad's will once I'm seventeen?" Aquila asked quietly. "I can't do that. My dad was the last male Black to have children... I have no other family. I can't just-"

"And Sirius Black? Potter's convinced he's innocent. You even told me you ran into him... Stay with him-"

Aquila shook her head, "I need to stay with mother...I'm the last Black-"

"Screw the Blacks, Aquila," Angelina cried. "You're a human being. You live your own life."

"As a Black, I have to keep the bloodline-"

"But if you marry a Zabini, your bloodline would become Zabini, not Black. Your children, regardless of who you marry, will not be under the Black name. Therefore I see no point in you keeping the name."

"I just... my mother and-"

"You know what I think?" Angelina asked quietly. "I think you're terrified. You hate marriage, you know that?" Aquila glanced away from her. "You have galleons up your ass and you know that. So, you know what? I say what? What's the big point? Every guy you've ever dated has been a beautiful human being, inside and out, and you could have married any one of them. But you don't even entiertain the thought because you're so terrified about how your mother thinks of them. The only time you've ever disregarded your mother's wishes for a break up was Diggory-"

"I don't bloody know what I do wrong, okay? Every fucking guy I've been with ends up with them cheating on me!" Aquila insisted. "What am I supposed to do? I don't know what I do wrong! They get sick and tired of me half way through a relationship and spend the rest of the time trying to figure out how to end it. And I thought Diggory was different, okay? I thought Cedric was the one, but he wasn't, was he? Because behind my back, he's fucking my best friend and - and I never knew why. He would never tell me what went wrong. I never knew what I did. And they always do it. They _always_ see someone else behind my back and I'm so _blind_. I believe the best in everyone and when I see the best, that's all I want to see because their best is who a person is. Their worst is their best. And I don't know, maybe I'll just marry this guy becaues it's guaranteed he _won't_ cheat on me. Okay? Is that what you want to hear? I'm terrified of getting married to someone because I know they'll get tired of me, just like every other guy out there. And wizarding marriages are for life, but a man is allowed to have a mistress, but awoman's not. So if he gets tired of me, I'm stuck in this frigid marriage with whatever kids he wants and he's off fucking little miss perfect maid because he doesn't want me anymore and I can't leave-" She sucked in a breath and put her hands to her face. "Merlin, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to... to blow up."

"You need to," Angelina said quietly. "Diggory loved you. They all loved you-"

"They _cheated _on me. They don't love me if they cheat on me."

"You didn't..." Angelina groaned. "Merlin, did you have sex with him?"

"I-" Aquila faltered. "I don't want to answer that."

"You did!" Angelina accused. She sat heavily on the bed. "I take it your mother doesn't know."

"Of course not," Aquila muttered. "She'd throw a fit."

"What's so bad about that?" Dudley asked, confused. "I mean, it's normal, isn't it? Human emotions and reactions and what not."

"In the wizarding world... especially pureblood society, it's a... it's a very sacred thing. A pureblood man expects his pureblood wife to be a virgin when they marry," Angelina explained quietly. "If she's not, the marriage can be void and she'll be shunned."

"But that's ridiculous."

"I didn't know he was going to die," Aquila insisted, tears in her eyes. "He kept telling me how he was talking about marriage and he loved me and... and I thought we were going to get married. He said he picked out the ring and everything. And then-" She frowned. "And then he found Cho Chang. And I kept telling myself he was different because he... he told me we'd get married and it was right before the first task... I don't know... I was so worried for him. The dragons and stuff and he kept telling me it'd be fine and-" She trailed off as she noticed Dudley shift uncomfortably. "Sorry. Merlin, okay, topic change. That's really awkward and inappropriate."

"No, I'm good," Dudley said, but he really wasn't.

"Merlin's beard, Aquila... You know you can't go through with these marriage contracts because of this," Angelina whispered.

"I know," she muttered. "But my mother would be so disappointed and... and I have no chance, have I? Without this. I'd rather be stuck in a loveless marriage than one that ends in heartbreak and loneliness."

"Bloody hell, you need a hug." Angelina pushed off of the bed and hugged Aquila tightly. "You have to tell her. She can't make these contracts."

"After the World Cup," Aquila stated firmly. "Because that's after Quidditch trials. And she can_ legally _lock me up until I'm seventeen."

"That's just three weeks," Angelina sighed. "Alright. But you better hope she doesn't find out."

Aquila nodded and stepped away from the woman. She glanced at Dudley. "So, any suggestions on what to do next?"

"Er, not really, no."

"I've made the night awkward," Angelina sighed. "Sorry."

"No, I think you two need to talk, so I should probably go." He nodded to the bottle. "Thanks for the, er, mermaid tears. That's actually really good stuff." A giggle left Aquila. "Right, see you later."

"Bye," she nodded. He moved to leave, but he turned to face her suddenly, a little nervous.

"Uh, you doing anything tomorrow?"

Aquila glanced at Angelina, but the girl shook her head. "There's a match on," she shrugged. "Ireland versus Northern Ireland."

"Oh," he shifted. "Right-"

"But I'm willing to read about it in the papers if you have something planned," Aquila offered, interrupting him from saying something about leaving. He seemed to perk up a bit and nodded.

"Yeah, uh, Mum left a note under my door. She wants you over for dinner tomorrow. That is, if you're up to that. But, uh, before that, if you want to like head to the park or something-"

"That sounds great," she smiled in what she hoped was hopeful. He nodded.

"Great, great," he trailed off, thinking. "Uh, how's..." He scratched the back of his neck as he thought. "Three?"

"Perfect," Aquila nodded.

"Right, bye. Uh, nice to meet you, Angelina."

"You too, Dudley!" Angelina called. He shuffled out and Aquila waited until she heard the front door close before she turned to Angelina.

"Merlin, Mum's going to hate me."

"You like that boy, don't you?" Angelina grinned.

Aquila shrugged. "He's sweet.. I mean, yeah, I do like him. I don't know about any future romance or anything, but he's really a gentleman. His mum adores me, even after my own mum went a bit ballistic on them."

"Again?"

"I'm not taking her anywhere anymore," Aquila sighed. "Anyway, yeah so... I feel like it's better if we're just friends... I mean, I just... the contract thing and I don't want to get hurt because I think he has a reputation as... being around."

"He's cute. I mean, he's not gorgeous or anything, but... if he spruced up a bit, he could be a hidden gem."

"I mean, his looks don't bother me. He's really smart," Aquila admitted, sinking on her chest. "He's a great guy. Listens when I drabble, and he asks questions... I could see us going somewhere, but... I don't want to get hurt."

"So, you'll just never move on from Diggory, instead?"

She elbowed Angelina. "Aren't you supposed to be finding George?"

"Off the radar. I told him to owl me and we can meet up, but not heard from him yet." She shrugged, brushing her black hair back. "I'm worried about you, Aquila. That's why I came today?"

"Are you still keeping my owl hostage?"

"Yeah, because you aren't unpacked yet. She could be crushed by a box or something. I'm only looking out for her," Angelina winked. "But I'm serious."

"I know... I just... I don't know. I just want to make it through the two Quidditch weeks."

"You know, you have an extra ticket for the match... you can bring Dudley," Angelina offered. "I'll ask dad to get Ministry approval-"

"I-I don't know if he'd want to, I mean, he barely knows you guys."

Angelina just grinned. "Ask him. If he says yes, I'll arrange for you lot to visit my Manor for a few days before. Quidditch trials, too, if he wants. You know how we camp out in the stands and usually just head over with some of the guys over to the match."

"Aidan's still saving us seats?" Aquila asked, biting her lip.

"Yup, and according to him, there's a spot open next year. If you think you can balance Quidditch and school..." Angelina grinned. "He said to tell you to try out. It's beater. Quigley's retiring. He's starting to get some bad beater's arm."

Aquila's eyes went wide. "No!"

"Just try out. You make the team, you make it. You don't, you don't." Angelina shrugged. "If you make it, well... You have a whole year to train. We'll all get you ready this year, if you want. George and Fred would be more than happy to, you know."

"You're giving me a heart attack, Ang," Aquila admitted. She forced herself to breathe. "I mean, I ... I would love to, you know that, but Mum-"

"It's your dream, Aquila, remember that. Sleep on it. I need to head home."

"You're going to make me sit by myself all day?"

"I think you need it," Angelina admitted. "Just make it through the weeks and Floo me when you find out. I'll have to get Dad's approval right away."

"Right, I'll do that," Aquila murmured. "Angelina?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you. It means a lot that you ... you stopped by."

Angelina laughed. "What are friends for?" But when she left, Aquila didn't feel too helped at the moment. She had to avoid her mother for three weeks. Once that was up, she'd be ... well, she could tell her.


	7. Chapter 7

"Petunia invited me over for dinner," Aquila stated the following day, nervously twidling her thumbs as she stood in the doorway of the kitchen. Euryale looked up, her blonde curls falling into her face. "I just wanted to let you know before dinner."

"Both of us?"

"No," Aquila swallowed. "Just me. Uh, she thinks I might have some ideas about her garden. Her roses keep dying and-"

"I see," Euryale said stiffly. Aquila didn't know what to say to put her mother in a good mood. "And you hung out with that boy all day."

"We're just friends," Aquila insisted. "Mother, it's nothing between us, you know that." Euryale didn't look convinced. "I can... post-pone dinner?"

"No, no, go. By all means. Have dinner with your friends."

"Mother, you know that's not fair," Aquila sighed. "I have dinner with you and your friends all the time."

"Because it's the proper thing for a lady of a house to do-"

"I don't want to be a -" she held her tongue before they could get into this fight. She smoothed her hands over her ruffled lace skirt. "I'll be leaving. I should be back by ten."

"If you sleep over at his house again, Aquila... You won't be seeing him." Aquila glanced up at her mother in confusion. "I know you went to that party, Aquila," Euryale said stiffly. "Potter's owl delivered the note. I'm not an idiot. For a Ravenclaw, you could have been a bit smarter in that." Aquila hesitated. "I trust nothing dishonorable happened?"

"No," Aquila said firmly. "He slept on the couch. He let me stay in his room. We're just friends, mother."

"And nothing happened with anyone at the party?"

She shook her head. "No, I just met a few people in the neighborhood over and they taught me some Muggle games... I know how to act around Muggles... I'm not an idiot either. And I know what not to do. I didn't sleep with him." Euryale nodded. "Um, the British Isles Finals, and the try outs..." Euryale raised her eyebrow. "We're thinking of going as a big group and... I was hoping you wouldn't be opposed to me going for the week. I don't-" she rushed quickly as her mother was about to speak. "I don't want you to say anything now. I just ... I think you should think on it. It'll be five of age wizards, thousands of well-built and protective Quidditch players, and I have a wicked swing myself. It just, it would mean a lot to me if I could go all week... and since I'm not going to be a professional player, I just... I feel like I should get as much in as possible." Euryale frowned slightly. "But I don't want you to answer now. You can tell me what you decide... after you think on it. Not tonight, if you don't want to... but I just _really_ want to go." Aquila bit her lip, stepping back. "Right, uh, see you later, mother."

"Wait, I just have one question, and then I'll think," Euryale said, halting her daughter from moving. Aquila slowly turned, dread making her bite her lip a little harder. Crap. "Is that boy going?"

"He's Muggle," Aquila said like that was obvious. Euryale raised an eyebrow, knowing there were ways around that. "I... Angelina thinks I should ask him. We have a ticket and... I would ask Potter, but he'd never get clearance from the Order, so... we don't want it to go to waste, and you don't like Quidditch, and he's really interested. So I was going to, but... but if you don't want me to, I understand."

"And the clearance from the Ministry?"

"Angelina said her dad could get it passed in time," Aquila admitted. "And if you say yes, I'll ask him. I'd rather he meet everyone before we're forced to live in a tent for a week, than then. But... yeah." She cleared her throat, watching as her mother shifted in her seat, the _Evening Prophet_ placed in front of her. The gossip section was open. "I just don't want him uncomfortable, you know? We'd probably meet at an Order safe house or something, get in touch with the Order so they have... you know, emergency evacuation plans and what not... So... I should probably head to dinner... I don't want to be late." Aquila awkwardly shuffled back a step. "And I know you're worried about me and him, but... I'm still not over Cedric. So, I won't be moving on anytime soon."

"I'll have an answer when you get back," Euryale said simply.

"Thank you," Aquila said politely. "I have a question of my own, actually. Real quick."

"Hmm?"

"Why is an arranged marriage so important to you?"

Euryale blinked. "This is a time of war-"

"What I mean is, how will you know that whoever I'm forced to marry is a good person? What if they take the mark... force me to take it?" She bit her lip as her mother considered this. "The Zabini family isn't light. Mr. Zabini was a Death Eater. And this other family? I know nothing about them... I'm worried I'll be stuck in a bad decision I can't get out of."

"I'll be thinking on this as well," Euryale sighed. "Now go."

Aquila nodded but hesitated. She rushed to her mother's side and kissed her cheek. "I love you." And she was gone before she got a response. Vernon answered the door when Aquila arrived, her hair loose and falling down her back in a tumble of curls. She gave him a smile. "Hello, Mr. Dursley-"

"Vernon, please," he insisted, letting the girl inside. "Petunia's made chicken."

"That sounds lovely," Aquila insisted, smiling brightly. She walked towards the living room as per Vernon's request and spotted Potter and Dudley on opposite couches, watching a television program. It was fascinating. Aquila had never turned on the box in her house, but this... this was amazing. There were people inside! Merlin, Muggle studies didn't teach that! They just said it predicted the weather and shouted the news at Muggles.

"Please, have a seat. Would you like some tea?" Vernon asked.

"Oh, no, I'm fine, thanks," Aquila smiled towards him. She sat beside Dudley and peered at the television with narrowed eyes. "How do those people get inside the box?"

"It's sort of like your posters, I expect," Dudley admitted, his eyes glancing towards her briefly before turning towards the screen. He gestured towards the antenna atop it, in a v pattern and pointing towards the ceiling. "Those get this signal from space, and the picture shows up in the box. The pictures are taken someplace else - like ours would be from London or something." He shrugged, blushing slightly. "I'm not sure exactly how that works."

"That's fascinating," she murmured. "We learned in school that it just shouts at you."

He chuckled. "No, it doesn't do that." There was a pause as she stared at the screen. "Uh, how was your match?"

He remembered? She didn't think he would, as she had skipped it to spend the day with him in the park. "Ireland won," Aquila smiled, glancing towards him. "Of course. Northern Ireland stood no chance."

"Talking about footie, are we?" Vernon asked, limbering into the room and taking a seat beside Potter. Both seemed extremely uncomfortable with that situtation.

"Quidditch, a, uh, sport in my world. My mum left the article on the match in my room while I got ready to stop by." Euryale had and it frightened Aquila to death. It had never happened before and Aquila didn't know if it would happen again. If it did, she might have to admit her mum to St. Mungo's for finally going around the bend. "Ireland is playing minor charity games now, until the British Isles Final in two weeks. A few friends of mine play on the team so I sort of root for them because I've known them all my life."

"You know the players on Ireland's team?" Potter blurted.

Aquila shrugged. "They're all Ravenclaws."

"Got pretty much all their signatures, except for that one bloke-"

"Aidan Lynch," Aquila admonished Dudley lightly, laughing. "He taught me how to fly for Quidditch. Ireland's-"

"Seeker!" Potter gasped.

"I'm hoping to get him to do me a favor and finish my autograph collection before he does any more idiotic moves," Aquila laughed. She rose. "I'll go see if Petunia needs any help in the kitchen."

"I'm doing fine, dear, you sit down and talk!" she heard Petunia call.

"Oh, alright," Aquila said, sitting back down. "If you're sure."

"Positive!"

"So you went to the World Cup?" Potter asked.

Aquila nodded. "I, uh, met some people there and yeah... Aidan saved me some tickets."

"So the Death Eater attack-"

"We were pretty close to where they started," Aquila admitted. She thought back to the firey night. "But we made it out alright." She did not want to make them think it was dangerous, especially if she could get Dudley to go with her. "But yeah, I went. Best match I've been to in a while."

"So this sport... Quidditch. Exactly how does it work?"

Aquila grinned and Dudley groaned. "She's going to go on all day," Dudley insisted.

"I'll ... keep it short and to the point," Aquila sighed, as though she wanted to do exactly the opposite. So she laid the ground work and Vernon nodded, listening closely and nodding once more.

"You really like this sport," Vernon observed after Aquila had finished.

The dark haired witch flushed. "Sorry. I absolutely breathe it, sir." Vernon seemed surprised with her apology. "I, uh, get a bit carried away with it."

"Not as bad as Wood," Potter muttered.

Aquila gave a small nod of agreement. "You just haven't seen me absolutely go bonkers with team selection bidding."

"What's that?" Vernon asked, brow furrowed.

"During try-outs, which is in two weeks, sir," Aquila informed him, "There's this massive ... uh, World Cup, if you will, but it's just try outs for every British team there is. The players all gather in this one spot and try out one after another and all day for seven days straight there's just try-outs and there's friendly competition between your friends to make as many matches as you can to the correct and final choices. I've won four years in a row and I'm hoping to make it my fifth this year."

Vernon learned forward. "What's the prize? Is it like a sponsored prize or...?"

"Oh, no, it's usually just something silly between my friends and I. Fred and George are known for being pretty big pranksters." She bit her lip as she giggled, leaning forward as well. "Absolutely brilliant. Anyway, the winner gets a prank of their choice on whomever they wish. But sometimes, it's less drastic and can be homework for a month, or even a free score in a Quidditch game. It gets pretty fierce after the first three days of basically no sleep and staring through binoculars at a small figure on a broom. The first year I won, I was given a free prank. So I decided, after much deliberation because I couldn't take it back, that I would dye all of the hated house in my school's hair a vibrant, vibrant green their first day. It was very elaborate and the twins appreciated the challenged. It worked. It was my first year in school as well. None of them ever found out it was me. They thought it was the school... uh, bully Peeves."

Vernon was chuckling in amusement. She thought he might like that story. "Why aren't you around more often?"

"Oh, well... I'm not quite sure," Aquila laughed back. "Your family is truly lovely."

"See? I like her, Petunia! How soon can we adopt you?"

Well that was unexpected. "I'm afraid you'll have to discuss that with my mother, sir," Aquila admitted. "She may not be that willing to give me away."

"And do you have a pet, as well?"

"I have an owl," Aquila admitted. "But she's staying with my friend Angelina until I'm all settled. But it was a very close call. I almost got a cat."

"Oh? So an owl isn't the only option?"

"A cat, a toad, and an owl," Aquila informed them. "I have to say, though, I'm so jealous of Potter's owl. Hedwig is absolutely gorgeous. Did you find her, Potter?"

"Er, no, Hagrid did."

"Ah," Aquila nodded. "She's beautiful. I'm intrigued as to where you came up with the name, however. Hedwig is a very unusual name. There are two saints in the twelvth and thirteenth centuries by the name of Hedwig."

"I dunno, really," Harry shrugged. "Just sort of came to me, I guess."

"Ah, right, dinner's ready, dears." Aquila glanced back towards Petunia and rose, following the other's to the table. There was a brief awkward silence before Petunia picked up a bowl of something. "Potatoes, Aquila?"

"Oh, yes, thank you," Aquila stated and took the bowl, scooping only a little out before offering it to Vernon. And that was dinner. They passed things around, talking, laughing. And she noticed that Potter seemed to be a bit more relaxed for the evening. Almost like he was being treated... well normal, and like he wasn't used to it. Merlin, how was this family when she wasn't there?

"So, who was it that came over yesterday?" Potter asked her.

"Oh, Angelina Johnson," Aquila smiled towards him. "We talked about you, don't worry."

"Oh?" Potter asked, confused. "Why?"

"She's Quidditch captain this year," Aquila informed him. "For Gryffindor. She wanted to talk strategy, I think."

"You didn't?" Potter pressed.

"Never got around to it," Aquila shrugged. "She sort of told me that if she told me any strategy, it'd be a conflict on the field. I should, after all, be named my own team's captain. So, you understand my reluctance to share these details with you." She sent him a smile and a giggle. "However, I will tell you she's thinking of making you pull a Wronski feint."

Potter paled. "What?"

"Kidding," Aquila smiled innocently. She took another bite of her chicken. "You know, Petunia," she said once she swallowed. "This is delicious. You simply must teach me how to use the stove. I can barely manage bacon."

"Oh, well, that simply won't do, will it?" Petunia insisted. "I'll get right on that. How about tea tomorrow-?"

"I don't want to rush-"

"Nonsense, it's an essential skill. What do you eat for a meal, then, if you don't use a stove?"

"Oh, we have a... an elf cook for us. For dinners that is. We can manage lunch and breakfast easily. They're these sort of... small creatures that..." She held her hand up so it was about two feet from the table's top. "They're about this tall, pale, look like little people, but have quite large eyes and ears. They're really adorable, to be honest. But they've been bred for milenia to serve familys, so that is what they do now. It's truly awful, and some treatment is horrible to these creatures, but they do not complain. It's almost pitiful. However, the elves are happy to cook meals or do basic house work."

"Good God, could you imagine if everyone had one of those?" Vernon cried.

"Depending on the size of a house, there can be as many as one elf to three hundred. They're usually in pairs, because they tend to go a little crazy when they're alone with no one to talk to, but they're very good creatures. Very, very loyal."

"And you pay them?" Petunia asked, intruiged.

"No," Aquila admitted, wincing. "You can try, but they take it the wrong way. Being free is a punishment to them, a disgrace to their ... their name and species, I suppose. And payment is a form of telling them they're free. It's a very much ignored practice in the wizarding world. Often overlooked. But he's a family elf, about a hundred and seven." Aquila giggled at their shocked faces. "They live exponentially long lives. And if there is a male and female in the house, they can be permitted to have children, so you essentially get more workers for the price of two." Aquila shook her head. "However, any motion to give these elves rights in the past has been heavily disregarded."

"Are they the only creatures treated that way?" Petunia questioned.

"Yes, and no," Aquila explained. "There are ... laws restricting every other species out there, but none as much as elves. Since our society is run by Purebloods, er, a person that is born with no trace of any non-magical lineage, it's essentially an aristocracy. Purebloods are a higher class than half-bloods and Muggleborns. But those two are of higher class than werewolves, vampires, merpeople, and ..." She tried to think of another one.

"Veelas."

She glanced at Potter, thinking of any Wizard Law text she had ever read. "Veelas are very... They're treated very much like Purebloods. Their beauty can get them anything they want, and they usually marry into Pureblood families to strengthen the gene pool and to give blood and beauty for generations upon generations."

"What is a Veela?" Vernon asked, hesitating over the word as he tried to pronounce it right.

"They're..." Aquila bit her lip, furrowing her brow as she thought. "They're a lot like sirens, I think. They have an essence about them that draws men in, and while they aren't lethal, they are, well, very aggressive. Depending on how much Veela blood you have, the more traits you take on. For instance, I have a quarter Veela blood in me. My grandmother on my mother's side was a full Veela." She shrugged as she glanced at them. "I'm pretty, and sometimes I have charm, sometimes not. I also have good reflexes. My mother is half, meaning she has the charm and the beauty, as well as the longing for her mate, my father. It's a sort of bond between them, I suppose. That's why she flirts relentlessly with men. Her Veela side is trying to be satisfied. My grandmother was born in a Veela colony in southwest Ukraine. Veela's are white blonde and they have wings and almost bird like heads when they're in full transformation - I can't do that, neither can my mother. Um, basically, they travel around the world trying to find their mate when they're of age, and yeah... They're very polite creatures, but once they are mad, it's safer to run than to stand your ground."

"And you don't... attack people?"

Aquila laughed at Vernon's hesitancy. "No, no. I have a temper sometimes, but that's all."

"That's fascinating. And do vampires and werewolves live amongst us... uh, Muggles, was it - as well?" Petunia inquired.

"Oh, well werewolves do," Aquila nodded. "They, uh... They're so restricted in my world that sometimes they entirely give up their magic just so they can get a job in the Muggle world. Some people, like Professor Lupin, keep their lycanthropy a secret. But eventually their absences around the full moon are noticed." She shrugged. "As for vampires, well... They mostly live in covens in mountainous areas, so typically they don't. Their reaction to the sun and what not would make it suspicious."

"Good thing there's no sun in England, eh?" Vernon laughed.

"Aquila, I couldn't help but notice your... understanding of the television. Does the wizarding world not have one?"

"Oh, no," Aquila shook her head. "Not at all. We're a ... proactive bunch, I suppose. It's more encouraged to pratice flying, de-gnome the garden, plant herbs and whatnot for potions. You hardly ever stay in the house. If you are, it's typically because you're grounded or you don't have much of a yard to do that in." She shrugged. "We have radios, though. Three channels because it's a relatively new innovation, but it provides great entertainment. There's the Quidditch station, the music station, and the news station."

"Music?" Vernon asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, some of it is absolutely awful," Aquila insisted. "I assure you, you aren't missing anything. The Wierd Sisters are... well, weird. If they aren't singing about Goblins or owls that want to dance with them," Aquila rolled her eyes. "And Celestina Warbeck... She's... alright. Sort of opera, but more like your forties style music. An acquired taste, certainly."

"Do they have concerts and whatnot?" Dudley asked.

Aquila nodded immediately. "Oh, yeah. The Weird Sister came to the Yule Ball at my school as a special guest. I'm not quite sure how your concerts are, so I can't compare, but I'd assume they were the same."

"Have you heard of the Beatles?" Vernon asked suddenly.

Aquila bit her lip, thinking. "I don't think so. They aren't... a bug, I take it?"

"A band," Petunia smiled. "Amazing band. They're from Liverpool in the sixties. Oh, my sister and I grew up on them."

"I can't say I've heard of them," Aquila admitted. "What are they like?"

"Oh, I have to play one of their albums for you," Petunia insisted. "I hope you like them. I can't quite guarantee that you will, as I don't know your taste at all."

"I like all music," Aquila smiled politely. So as they finished their meal, talking of their favorite songs and such, Aquila helped Petunia with the dishes while Vernon went to the record player. It was pretty much like the Wizarding polygraphs, but the music was quite different. No Goblin Bobbers or Mer-pipes. The music was fast, upbeat, and the voices were... catchy. Aquila rather liked them and told them as such.

"I wanna hold your hand," Aquila sang under her breath as she departed from the Dursley home some time later, the late night overhead. Vernon had insisted upon Dudley walking her back, but she had promised them it was no problem. It was only four doors. "Oh, please, say to me," Aquila sang as she opened the door to Number 8. She felt the wards bend, letting her in, before she shut the door. "You'll let me be your man. And please, say to me... I wanna hold your hand. I wanna hold your hand." Aquila slipped off her heels and placed them at the bend by the stairs, out of the way of the other.

"Aquila?" her mother's voice sounded. She stopped singing immediately, biting her lip in nervousness. Crap. Right, the whole Quidditch thing. Aquila approached the door apprehensively and saw her mother standing besides an open box. Upon entering the room, Aquila noticed them to be silver - though their China cabinet was already full. They'd have to transfigure it larger. "How was dinner?"

"Good. They had me listen to some Muggle music," Aquila admitted. "The Beatles. I rather like them."

"The band or the Dursleys?" Euryale asked.

"Well, both," Aquila admitted. "I think they like me, too." She bit her lip, thinking hard. "I'm pretty sure."

Euryale just nodded and gestured towards the couch. "Sit with me. I was just making tea."

"Do you want me to help you unpack?" Aquila asked, glancing at the boxes. "I can help sort some things and decide what we should put in the shed-"

"No, I think I'm done for the evening. Sit." Aquila did so, and shifted uncomfortably as her mother sat beside her. This was it, wasn't it? Moment of truth. "You're almost seventeen," Euryale sighed. "I don't know how my little girl got so big."

"Mum-"

"Let me speak," Euryale insisted. She smoothed out the emerald of her skirt and let out a small sigh. "I've always tried to protect you, you know. When we moved to London, it was to keep you as safe as I could. There are lots of things a man wants from a woman, and the wrong man can change everything- can change her. Whether it's for good or bad. I don't know if I've ever see you visit friends as often as you do here."

"I-I've never been allowed to leave the neighborhood," Aquila admitted. "And usually when I do, it's to Angelina's because of her wards and... and the Quidditch matches and such-"

"And I know it's my fault," Euryale interrupted gently. "I know that I shelter you too much. Goodness, I refused to let you fly once your father died for years. Evan had to sneak you out into the garden, do you remember?" Aquila giggled, nodding. "And I realize how much I was not letting you be who you were. I was forcing you to be someone you're not. I still am-"

"I know you're just looking out for me," Aquila stated quietly.

"You're braver than I have ever been," Euryale said softly, Aquila almost not quite sure she heard her right. "When your father died, I refused to do anything risky - refused to do anything but stay at home and keep you and Evan safe... And when you lost Cedric, much like your father was to me..." Euryale held her breath a moment as she tried to hold back her tears, "you went back out there and did what you needed to do. You kept strong and maybe you're stronger than me- you've taken after your father more than myself." Euryale cleared her throat and brushed at under her eyes. Aquila didn't know what to do. "You approached me very maturely tonight, and I commend you for that."

"But," Aquila muttered, knowing there was a but.

"No buts. You have. And I thought about it over dinner, which was quite quiet, by the way," Euryale stated sharply, glaring at her daughter briefly before it fell into an uncomfortable gaze. "I don't know anything about you, do I? I heard your argument with Angelina yesterday, you know." Aquila paled. Oh no. "About the men cheating on you." Okay, so not all of it, then? "And you're right... When you approached me, you were right. I can't guarantee they'll be good people, because everyone changes in war- temptation, bribes, and greed... I can't guarantee you'll be safe. I can't guarantee that they'll be resiliant against the Dark Lord, because even in the first war, the best people turned." Her hand grabbed her daughters and she squeezed it tightly. "So, this is what I propose."

"Propose?" Aquila repeated quietly, confused.

"I say that anyone that wants to have your hand, must go through me first."

"But that's what would have happened anyway. You have to approve, you know, like tradition-"

"I just don't want you to elope," Euryale said firmly. "And even if I disagree..." She bit her lip, much like Aquila's own habit. It was a trait she had gained from her mother, and a trait that was most useful in the Ravenclaw house, when Aquila needed to think. "I promise not to disagree without knowing them, alright? I'll try to get to know them, but if they give me a bad feeling - and not because of reputation, but because of their character - like if they're abusive, or seem to only want you for our money, I will let you know and hopefully you'll listen."

"I can promise to listen, but I have dad's stubborn side... you always tell me that."

Euryale laughed to herself. "Yes, you do. But I hope you'll listen. Hope is all I can take, I'm afraid... You have to make your own choices. Arranged marriages are so _middle ages_." So she had heard Angelina's comment, then. "Promise me you won't marry a Death Eater. Don't go through that like I did."

"I promise," Aquila insisted. "I won't get married until after the war, anyway. I don't want to die in the war and leave my husband a widow or anything."

"Yes, I don't want that for you, either, if he dies. It's the most painful thing you can ever go through, Aquila... You're my little girl, I don't want you to be in pain."

"It's too late for that, I'm afraid," Aquila admitted carefully. "I loved Cedric, a lot. I was so sure he was it and my heart broke every day for five months as he saw Cho Chang behind my back. And I knew it."

"I know..." Euryale sighed. "That's why I've decided that ... Quidditch." Aquila immediately perked up, giving her mother her full attention. The woman noticed. "I hope you got the Quidditch page I left for you."

"You've never done that before," Aquila admitted. "I didn't think you even knew I was waiting for that match for weeks."

Euryale smiled softly. "I may force you to do things you don't want to do, but I do notice the things you talk about constantly, for hours and hours on end as you help me unpack or plant the garden."

"Oh," Aquila admitted quietly, glancing about. "Sorry."

"Ireland won."

"It was a charity match, for St. Mungo's children's ward," Aquila informed her. "They donated all the money they got from tickets to the ward and-"

"You want to play for them, don't you?"

Aquila hesitated. "I want to, yes, but I won't... Aidan Lynch, their seeker- he says there's going to be a spot the season after this upcoming one, for a beater, but... I won't go. There's no way I'll even make the team, so-"

"You should go with your friends and the Johnsons in the upcoming weeks," Euryale sighed. "Not with that boy, yet. I still need to think on that, so I'll sleep on his invite and tell you in the morning." Aquila gasped in surprise. "I trust that you'll keep your wand on you at all times, you'll not wander off, and that you'll stay in your stand seats."

"Of course," Aquila insisted firmly. "Really? I can go?"

Euryale nodded, her grip on her daughter's hand tight. "_But_," she said suddenly, making Aquila falter. "I want you to be responsible. Don't sleep with anyone, don't drink too much, don't leave your group wards."

"Of course not," Aquila insisted, her eyes wide. She squealed suddenly and engulfed her mother in a hug. "Oh, thank you! This is going to be amazing. Oh, Merlin, I need to start packing. I need to get my bat for Quigley and Connolly to sign at the match and-"

"Breathe-"

Aquila blushed. "Sorry. Um, I just have a lot I need to pack. My jerseys, my-"

"Aquila." Aquila clamped her mouth shut. "Now, you should head to bed..." Aquila nodded and stood, kissing her mother on both cheeks. "I'll see you for breakfast."

"Love you, goodnight!" Aquila squealed again before she leaped over a box and heading for the hall. "Where's Polly?"

The house elf appeared immediately, his bright green eyes wide and staring at Aquila. It was wearing a ragidy pillowcase Aquila had tried to clean for him, but he insisted it was befitting for him. "Does Miss require anything?"

"No," Aquila admitted. "I just wanted to say goodnight. I haven't seen you."

"Polly has been weeding the garden for the last few days with Mistress, Miss," the elf stated, bowing.

"Oh, well, goodnight, Polly. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Polly will make breakfast. Polly apologizes for not making breakfast recently. Polly has been working day and night on the garden." He looked nervous, on the edge of punishing himself.

"Oh, no problem. I've managed to miraculously make something, so it's really helping me on my Muggle studies essay," Aquila insisted. She patted the top of the elf's head, ignoring how he flinched as though she'd hit him. "See you tomorrow, Polly."

The elf just bowed and Aquila squealed yet again before rushing up the stairs and opening her trunk, going to her closet and opening the wardrobe doors. Flicking on her bedroom light, she began to pick through her jerseys. Eight. One for each day of the trials, and her Irish jersey that would be the last to be packed. It would be hanging on her wall until the day she left. She heard her mother climbing the stairs once she managed to pack the last of her shorts into the trunk, and a bat.

"Aquila?"

"Yes, mother?" Aquila asked, glancing behind her as the blonde woman hovered in the doorway. She was still fully dressed, her heels on and all.

"I just want to ask... why do you want to bring that boy with you?"

Aquila set the beater's bat - that she was determined to get signed and sit on her bookshelf for centuries - down in the trunk and stood slowly, thinking. "Well, he seems rather fascinated with it, and he's really interested in the wizarding world... I mean, he doesn't have to go - he could very well not want to go - but I think we're friends and I think it'd be a good opportunity to know more about him without his friends sort of swaying how he answers questions about himself..."

"What are his friends like?"

"They're... Dennis is great," Aquila admitted. "Really funny and he's sort of the life of the party, I guess. Piers is a bit of a sleeze ball that treats women like crap. Dudley actually confessed to me that he doesn't really like him much. Malcolm is... he's alright. I've only met him once. He's kinda quiet, but he's really outgoing once you get in a conversation."

"And any girls he hangs out with?"

Aquila bit her lip. "Well, at the, uh... the party-" Euryale nodded for her to continue, "Well, there were these three girls. Amazing. Amber drove us over after the party. Natalie's really outgoing. Um, Amber and Lucinda are really competitive. They actually are really responsible though. I didn't talk to Lucinda much, but Amber was really nice. They really liked the dress you designed, too."

"Which dress?" her mother asked, confused. "You came back in jeans."

"Uh, I might have disguised my sleepover with transfigured clothing," Aquila admitted with a wince. "That black dress..."

"Oh, I see," Euryale murmured. "And he didn't... try anything with you?"

"No," Aquila promised. "Like I said, gentleman. I fell asleep in the car on the ride back and he carried me into his house-" Euryale raised an eyebrow. "His hands weren't anywhere near my no-go zones, don't worry." She tapped her knees and the middle of her back. "Right there. Anyway, he said he was taking the couch and he left me in his room with a glass of water and some Muggle medicine for a hangover in the morning." She shrugged. "He didn't drink that much. I don't think he drinks a lot." Aquila cleared his throat. "And I woke up around noon and Potter made us some food."

"What time did you get back?"

"Ten, maybe eleven at night," Aquila admitted. "It wasn't for a long time."

"You did go even though I told you not to go." She winced slightly. "I'm just glad you behaved responsibly."

"I'm sorry, I just... I wanted to meet new people and I was curious as to what Muggle parties were like." She hesitated. "He wants to be a doctor... a Muggle healer." She sat on her bed as if there was a weight on her. "But his dad wants him to take over Grunnings, his dad's company... He hates that company. But he doesn't want to disappoint his dad. But he's really smart and he knew just what kind of medicine I needed for my hangover..." She gave her mother a brief smile. "I don't know if he told me that because he was still kind of drunk, or because it was really true, but ... it made me realize that Muggles have just as much ambitions in life as we do."

"You know, he's sort of just like you in a way," Euryale told her daughter. "Stubborn beyond belief - insisting on hanging out with you despite all the glares I give him - and he does what he can to make his parents happy." Aquila jerked with surprise. Her mother's brown eyes met her daughter's and a soft smile touched at her lips. "Do you want to date him?"

"I'm not ready to date," Aquila murmured. "He's a nice guy, my type, but... I don't know. I don't..." She lifted her shoulder in a hug. "I still have nightmares of Cedric, and... and I don't want to move on so fast, but at the same time I just want to because Cedric tore me apart and I want to be put back together again... I just don't know so..."

Euryale hummed as she thought. "Well, do you know what I think?"

"Not really," Aquila admitted in a chuckle.

Her mother rolled her eyes. "I think that you fancy him, but you just want to make sure you're ready to move on before you approach him." She cleared her throat. "However, that does not mean I want you to sleep with him-"

"Mum!" Aquila groaned.

"Sorry," Euryale sighed. "I'm heading to bed. Goodnight."

"Wait, what you said earlier. That means no marriage contract?" Aquila asked hopefully. "You just approve of whoever I fall in love with?"

Euryale hesitated. "Yes... Because in this war, I fear it will be a lot worse than the last... Fall in love with someone that's good, Aquila. Please. Don't fall in love with anyone that will turn to the Death Eaters. Because he will need more followers than just the men, and you can be forced to take the bind as well. Promise me."

"I promise not to marry anyone that is potentially turning a Death Eater," she stated immediately. "And thank you... Thank you for the contract voidage and the Quidditch thing. It means so much to me."

"If you forever end the pureblood lineage of the Black family by the marriage of a halfblood or Muggleborn or something ..." Euryale sighed as Aquila seemed to expect this. "It better be an amazing guy."

"What?" Aquila gasped. Her mother wasn't a surpremist, but she certainly didn't want her daughter to marry anyone less than a pureblood. So this... this was like the world was ending. "Mother, are you alright? Do you need like St. Mungo's or... or something?"

"Your brother just informed me he got engaged," Euryale stated simply. "Two months away, and he's already engaged. She's a Javier, a fine pureblood girl. I went to school with her uncle. They'll carry on the Black family, and therefore you won't have to. You'll be free to do as you wish."

"Is she an Order member?"

"She is," Euryale nodded. "The reason for their quick engagement is because she's possibly pregnant. The wedding is taking place in a few weeks. We aren't invited... It's too dangerous and they don't want to bring attention to their home through international travel. Apparently only her sisters will be attending the wedding."

"You don't believe that to be the case."

"Oh, I do," Euryale admitted. "Her parents would be furious if they found out she was pregnant before the wedding. So the first Black to be born of the next generation is already on the way. I'm going to be a grandmother."

"You're too young to be a grandmother. How's..._ Not mother_?" Euryale laughed at the term, obviously pleased with how it didn't make her seem old. "I can't believe he's getting married... He's always been a bit of an advocate against marriage."

"It made me realize you aren't as little anymore... You should thank him. . . he's the reason you won't be in an arranged marriage, and why you can go to that boy and make out with him all you like-"

"Mum! I haven't even kissed him!" she protested, flushing as her mother laughed. "Ugh, honestly, you're worse than Angelina!"

"What else can you tell me about him?" Euryale asked suddenly. "I want to know who you want to go spend a week away with."

Aquila bit her lip, thinking. "Well, he's sort of smart. I mean, he doesn't like people knowing that, I don't think. His friends don't think he is, but he just understands and he can remember things that I say on the whim - some things, like terms or whatnot, he has a bit trouble over, but like I told him once that firewhiskey was made of merpeople tears and I was pretty sure he was still drunk when I said it, and he remembered. We had a conversation about ourselves, too... He wants to do good things, but he's not been the best person in the past. He, uh..." She hesitated, glancing at her mother, to see her leaning against the doorway, her fingers clasped in front of her. "He used to bully, when he was little."

"That doesn't surprise me," Euryale muttered. "Just look at his father."

Aquila could see the point. Vernon was a bit intimidating and seemed to be the type to push his son to make others do what he wanted. "But, he said that he wants to leave that behind, but it's really hard because of his reputation and stuff... his friends sort of look to him to bully and stuff, so he's trying, but it's difficult."

"And you think you can change that?"

Aquila shook her head. "Only Dudley can change that."

"Good answer," Euryale admitted. "Well, then, I have much to think over, don't I?"

"I suppose-" but her mother was already gone. Aquila sighed and rose, walking towards her bed and shutting it before she turned back to her trunk. Maybe she should bring a few extra sheets of parchment before she got the parchment packets from the twins - charmed with all the names of the players trying out and which teams they wanted to try out for. She had no idea how they did it, but Merlin, the twins were genius. And they sold the charmed parchment to other people that wished to do the same thing - bet on how many correct matches they can make. Merlin, they were going to be rich when they graduated and finally opened that joke shop. Aquila just knew it. She grabbed the parchment and placed it in tight rolls beside her jerseys. Notes on players. Afterall, some people did re-trials and she didn't want to forget them.

She stayed up late into the night, reading through her previous trial notes and deciding which players she'd probably see near her own seats. Afterall, if Aidan was saving them for her and her friends, she'd no doubt see the Ireland team watch the trials. They, afterall, picked who would fill any open spots - a Chaser position - this coming season. Aquila simply couldn't quell her excitement. Two weeks was too long.


	8. Chapter 8

Aquila forced herself to wait until eleven thirty before she set out to find Dudley. Since his father was gone - work - and Petunia was off having tea with Piers's mother, he was alone, as Potter seemed to be somewhere. She knocked on the door and practically vibrated with excitement. Merlin, her mother was going to get a large cake for this - made specifically with her own hand.

"Woah, what are you-?" he began, surprised to see her.

Aquila squealed, pushing past him and into the house. "Okay, so quick question before I press on and I want a completely honest answer, alright?"

"You're like really excited about something," Dudley observed slowly. He eyed her before looking down at her hands, grabbing his forearms as she turned him to face her. "Alright?"

"Do you think you'd like Quidditch?"

"Yeah, sounds a lot like rugby and footie, really," Dudley admtited. "You know, with flying and stuff."

She smiled and jumped a little in excitement before pulling him further into his house. "Okay, well, I have an extra ticket to the try-outs, and the match, and Mum just gave the go-ahead, so if you want to come along, you're absolutely able to! I just need to know by Friday so we can get you a Ministry pass and-"

"Your mother said this?"

"Yeah, you're invited to come along. It'd be Angelina, her parents, Fred and George Weasley, and Alicia Spinnet, and you'd get to meet Aidan Lynch, probably the rest of Ireland's team, and they'd take us to the match with them after the final day. I mean, you'd obviously have to ask your parents and whatnot, but it'd be completely free and all you'd need is to pack clothes." Aquila released him suddenly. "And if you want to meet everyone beforehand, Angelina says we could have like a big sleepover with everyone at her Manor so you can get to know them beforehand. I mean, I don't know when you start school, and what not, so, that could interfere I guess, but it's totally up to you. It's completely fine if you don't want to go, or you can't. And it's totally safe, if you're worried about that. And Merlin, my mother's been thinking about this since after dinner last night, so I just got the news like seven this morning and I didn't know when you were awake or anything, so yeah, I've been driving my mother crazy."

"What days are they?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

"August fifth until the fifteenth. Fifth would be Angelina's. The sixth is a Sunday, and that's the first day of trials. And the thirteenth is the last day of trials. The fourteenth is a Monday and the day of the match. And Tuesday, in case the match lasts a while so we can crash either at Angelina's or the camp or something." Aquila bit her lip as she flushed. "Oh, and, uh, sorry for sort of attacking you like that."

"That'd be wicked," he admitted. He smiled at her, "How did you get an extra ticket?"

Cedric. "Well, Angelina was going to give it to Fred and George's sister Ginny, but Ginny's too young. And she thinks you'd enjoy it a lot. I mean, I know you just started to hear about the wizarding world, but yeah... she likes you. She thinks you'll fit in with our friends and stuff... But no pressure. Absolutely no pressure."

She played with the hair over her shoulder as he seemed to think it over. "Yeah, I'll ask Mum and Dad when they get home."

"And if Potter asks why you go," Aquila grinned, hearing him chuckle, "let him know it's because he's not exactly in our circle of friends and he is a bit too targeted for me to enjoy the flying." She bit her lip as she grinned up at him. "So yeah, that's basically all I had to say. Offer you a week away from Little Whinging."

"Well, I don't have school, so that won't interfere. That doesn't start until about September fifth." Dudley shrugged his shoulder. "Uh, what are you-"

She knew he was going to ask what she was doing for the day, so she quickly interceeded. "My mum is just finishing unpacking and there's about five boxes left that she really wants to get through today, and I'm trying to stay in her good graces for the next few weeks so I'm sort of giving her me time." Aquila giggled in just happiness. Merlin, she couldn't remember being so happy in a while. "And even greater news, I'm not getting in an arranged marriage, and I'm not forced to marry some guy. She just said she has to approve. And Merlin, I couldn't sleep last night, I was practically leaping around the house. Like, this is not as excited as I was earlier."

She blushed in embarrassment as he laughed and she tried to calm down, but simply couldn't. "So, because of that, I'm sort of appeasing my mother with whatever she asks. So, I'll probably see you whenever. But I have to unpack the house and hopefully that's all the heavy labor she's forcing me to do to hang out with her." She hugged him suddenly and then pulled away, her cheeks turning pink. "Right, well, you have until Friday, but if we, for some reason, don't see each other after you find out, just stop by or whatever."

He chuckled. "Alright. I'll be sure you're the first I inform."

"Alright, thanks! Sorry, again, for just sort of barging in and stopping by unanounced..." She shrugged, giggling to herself. "I mean, you could have done anything or had anyone over and-"

"I'm not as popular as you think I am," Dudley cut her off, chuckling. "But, yeah, I'd really like to come."

She hugged him again, a little longer than the two seconds of last time. He was tall, though, so it was a difficult, and she fell back on her heels after a few more seconds, biting her lip and clasping her hands in front of her. "Right, well, I need to go. Have a good day and I'll see you... yeah, I'll see you." She bounced past him and towards the door. "Bye, Doc."

"Bye." She closed the door behind her and was halfway down the road when she squealed and sprinted the rest of the way home. Her mother glanced up at her entrance.

"And his response?"

"He's excited, but he has to ask his parents first. I told him that I have until Friday to request the Muggle pass." Aquila grabbed the nearest box, full of even more China. Honestly, how much China did they need and transfigured the armoire to be a little wider, giving her room to add another set. "Mother, thank you for this. It's really unexpected and... and I really appreciate it."

"I know, you've told me about eighteen times already in the past hour," Euryale admitted.

"Oh, right," Aquila muttered, lining the plates up along the free space and then working with the tea cups. A permanent dust removal charm followed.

Her and her mother were oddly silent as the day wore on, collapsing the last box just as the sun began to go down. Polly made a simple meal of roast and potatoes and Aquila sat across from her mother, the silence comforting, yet at the same time making Aquila anxious. Merlin, what? It was like her mother was going to say something to dash Aquila's hopes at eternal freedom away.

"I don't want you to run away," Euryale said at last. "I know it runs in the family, but please don't."

"I don't need to, now," Aquila admitted carefully. Her mother looked up sharply. "If I was going to run away, it would have been over the marriage contract thing..." She cleared her throat uncomfortably. Her mother's blonde hair had been put up in a rather Muggle style and her clothing was very casual. Her mother was changing, too, it seemed. Maybe Muggle areas were a good influence. "I was thinking of actually running to Sirius, if I had. He would have understood. He was in the same predicament as I back then, only he had the Dark Mark pressure as well." Aquila swallowed and played with the potatoes on her plate, mashing one up. She couldn't meet her mother's gaze, put a part of her wished she would. "I would have gone through drastic measures to get out of those marriage contracts. I mean, I don't even speak Italian."

"What if a nice fellow offers to marry you?" Euryale asked. "Like maybe ... Neville Longbottom, you know, that boy a year younger than you. Or maybe Anthony Otterburn." Aquila blinked.

"_Are _they?"

"Well, I received a letter from Simon Otterburn's father. Simon's just graduated, friends with Evan, it seems, and he is rather handsome." Euryale continued quickly as Aquila gave her plate a stab. "He's offering ten million galleons for your hand-"

"I don't want to be bought like some cattle," Aquila snapped. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. "Let me guess, you've accepted. Nice wizard that will keep me in Britain, so you can visit your grandchildren and gush about how they're so perfect and how their Pureblood lineage will put me into the goodgraces with the Dark Lord, hmm?"

"Aquila..." Euryale warned. "Just listen to me. Now, he's said that the terms of the marriage would be children after three years of marriage. And he would like to get married this Christmas-"

"Absolutely not," Aquila interrupted. "Mother, I'm not even of age yet! I can't get married when I'm barely seventeen-"

"I understand that, but you-"

"No, mother, please. You said that you just had to approve of who I dated!" Aquila reminded her, her eyes wide. "You can't just... you can't just break this one ounce of hope I had in choosing my own husband. I don't care if my marriage would be acceptable to the Dark Lord. I loathe the Dark Lord, as do you. So I'm sorry if I see no point in forcing me to marry a man that I barely know in order to satisfy an evil person because you're scared he'll target me. News flash, mother. He will target Harry Potter. Not me. We all know that. Potter and his friends. I may go to his house, but I'm not friends with Potter, so-"

"He won't just target Mr. Potter and his friends. He'll target anyone in the Order-"

"Exactly, so who I marry doesn't matter. I'll be in the Order no matter what."

Her mother frowned slightly. "Ten million galleons is a lot more than-"

"I don't care about galleons," Aquila insisted. "We have plenty - enough to get us by. Enough for my grandchildren to live off of. We don't need to trade me in for anything. Am I worth ten million galleons to you? Is ten million my breeding price?"

"Aquila, you're worth far more than ten million galleons, but he's a good man-"

"So what you said last night, that was all a lie?" Aquila demanded. "I truly have no choice in who I marry?"

"He's an Order member-"

"I can't believe this. You even confirmed the decision with me after our conversation and it all changes with one letter and ten million galleons? You're trading me for a new wardrobe! Do you realize that-?"

"I'm not trading you. We'd still see each other-"

"I have school," Aquila informed her. "I can't get married in the middle of my sixth year! I have Quidditch matches to do - I'm being named Captain! I can't just... You can't just expect me to throw that all away. I thought I'd get to do what I could in school - I always thought I could finish whatever unfinished business I wanted to in school because I always knew that after I'd never get to do what I wanted. I just..." She dropped her fork and stood quickly. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be in my room."

"Aquila, wait-Let's just talk about this-"

"There is no talking," Aquila insisted. "My say in the matter matters nothing to you. Any man that flashes a bit of gold at you and you'll marry me off to his eldest son!" Merlin, she had been so happy, so ready to do things her way. She should have known better. "I'm your daughter - your only daughter! You can't just ... Obviously you can."

Aquila made to leave, but a flick of Euryale's wand and the door shut and Aquila couldn't go that way. She moved towards the living room, intent on leaving through there, but she bounced off the shield that was cast between the non-existant wall of the living and dining room. "I'm letting you go to the Quidditch rubbish with that boy down the road-"

"Rubbish?" Aquila said in astonishment. "_Rubbish?_ It's everything I've ever dreamed of, to go to these things. You've never had a problem in the past, but suddenly I'm so excited about rubbish and you... you're marrying me off for rubbish and my life is just rubbish. What would Evan say? What would dad say? You know Dad never wanted me to be in an arranged marriage. He _told _you that. Evan even told me that you talked about it often. He refused to put me in a contract-"

"That was different," Euryale muttered.

"How is it different? It's the same thing! You're marrying me off to make our vault just a bit fuller. We don't need the money, there's no point in marrying me off. I'm not you, mother. I'm not-" She felt tears leak down her cheeks and brushed them away. "I'm not happy with staying at home and bearing children. Maybe you are, maybe you aren't... I don't even know... I've never been happy with it. I want to experience the world, I want to see all there is to see. I want to live and breathe freedom. I want to play Quidditch until I'm physically sick of it. I want to write articles in Quidditch Monthly. I want to wait to get married until I'm like twenty-five. That's the normal thing. That's... life. Life isn't staying at home, listening to the matches in private because it's improper for a woman to want to listen to a male's sport, coddling eighteen children because your husband spoils them to think they're better than Muggles and Muggleborns. Life isn't being some man's pillow and some man's trophey. Life is being yourself. Life is being... happy."

Euryale sniffed. "Yes, and I was happy being just what you think life isn't-"

"But we're different people!" Aquila cried. "I'm a tom-boy. I'm a certified 'one of the guys'. I'm not some lady. Maybe in title, but ... not in person. I love getting down and dirty in the mud, I love flying in the rain and snow. I'm okay with breaking my arms or legs in practice or in matches, because, bloody hell, it's exhilerating. And I'll sleep for months in a tent, if it meant I was having fun. I'd live in the woods with no access to running water for years. I'd cut all my hair off and live in the Muggle world. I'd train for years in the harshest of conditions and the worst of locations if it meant I did what I loved. I'd get tan and have cracked nails and-" her mother had already visibly cringed, but this seemed to be too much. "And I'd have split ends and live on two sickles. I'd rather prefer it to this... this sheltered self that has to sneak out to do anything that's considered improper. I _love_ being me. I love being able to put on my pratice clothes, or a jersey, and just go out there and do what I do best - and if I get dirty or hurt, bloody hell, good!"

"Your father wanted me to do what was best for you. Those Quidditch matches could kill you-"

"It's completely safe," she insisted. "I've been doing it since I was young enough for dad to teach me how to ride a broom, Evan to make me faster and stronger on them. And then Hogwarts... Aidan Lynch, the Irish seeker, taught me how to play Quidditch! The moment he put that beaters bat in my hand, I realized just how much I wanted it. He wants me to play for the Ireland team - the _national_ team the season after this. And Merlin, I want to so bad. Bloody hell, mother, when have I ever _not_ wanted to play? When have I ever lasted long without a broom? I've literally gone all summer without it and I'm dying. When have I ever not just gone into the garden after it rained and just gotten in a mud fight with Evan? When have I ever been a proper lady? I'm a girl that wants to roll in the mud and fly in the rain. I'm not a polished princess of a far off land. I'm sorry."

"I know I told you that your future would be yours to decide, but, Aquila... Maybe I was wrong-"

"Please, mother, please don't do this to me..."

"We all must make sacrifices," Euryale told her sharply. "We have to sacrifice something for the war, and maybe your freedom to marry is one of them."

"It's not just my freedom to marry, though," Aquila informed her. "It's my entire future. It's everything. If I married that Otterburn bloke, I'd have to go to Ministry balls, smile and be polite, talk about the children, inform everyone I was expecting my eighth child in ten years. I'd have to put make up on and wear dresses and heels all the time, and I can only go out with friends with my husband's permission. No listening to matches on the radio, no attending matches, no anything. I can't have a career, I don't have a future besides being a house wife... I'm not marrying Simon Otterburn, I'm not marrying anyone. I refuse to get married. If I'll be an eighty year old bachelorette, so be it. But I refuse to get married."

"I never had a choice with who I married-"

"So you don't want me to either?" Aquila demanded. She threw up her hands and moved towards the door again. "Let me go to my room, please."

"Aquila-"

"Please."

"I just want you to be happy."

"Then you need to start learning what makes me happy." Aquila was released and the door slammed against the wall, indenting the drywall, as she rushed up the stairs to her own room, slamming the door shut and leaning against it as tears escaped. Merlin's beard. She slammed her open palm against the door and sighed.

"So, I guess this is a bad time."

She gasped, flying around and her wand immediately pointing to the person sitting atop her bed. She had to wipe at the tears in her eyes, her heart beating fast in fear, but flipping the light on, her wand fell to her side and her brow furrowed. "Bloody hell, you scared me to death. What are you doing here?"

His tanned skin, shaggy brown hair, and wide, perfect smile made Aquila unable to frown. She gave him a small smile as he shrugged. "Missed you, kiddo."

She leaped toward him, tackling in a hug. "Merlin, Evan, you're getting married in like what? Few weeks? Bloody hell, does mum even know you're here?"

"Of course not," Evan laughed. She placed a hand firmly over his mouth, shushing him. When he finally quieted, he continued quietly while Aquila cast a silencing charm around her room. "Yeah, Rosa Javier... She's bloody amazing, Aquila. I wish you'd meet her."

"Why are you even here?" she asked, confused. "I mean, you should be in Spain."

"The Order called me in on business," he shrugged. "I got finished early, so I thought I'd stop by. I heard the scream fest downstairs and stuck up here and found your room..." He paused as Aquila collapsed on the bed, groaning. "What was that about?"

"Last night, she told me that she was cancelling my contracts to those blokes in Italy... But, well..." She glanced towards Evan as he laid beside her. "After she told me I could go to Quidditch with this boy down the road, she broke the news that Simon Otterburn is asking to marry me. Well, not Simon specifically, but his dad." Aquila covered her face with her hands. "And I was so sure that I'd be free to try out for Ireland and whatever I wanted now that I don't have to have my future dictated, but of course not."

"But ... but that's not fair! I'm not in a contract."

"Because you made a respectable engagement to Rosa Javier," Aquila muttered. "She even promised that all she had to do was approve of whoever I wanted to marry, promised to my fucking face, Ev, and then just as I'm so sure that I could make something happen for myself, she's already taking back her word!"

"I'm going to talk to her," Evan insisted. "How much was it?"

"Ten million. Merlin, Evan... What am I going to do? Angelina said I could live with her if I run away." Aquila bit her lip as she glanced at him, her hands falling away. He seemed to consider it. "I was thinking Sirius, though. He's sort of understanding on the whole Black pressure thing. Bloody hell, you got away, you lucky bastard."

Evan chuckled. "Yeah, well, it wasn't easy. I had to beg for that mission. . . You'd love Spain, Aquila. I'd offer to take you back with me, but you have school... and a new boyfriend?"

"No," Aquila answered the unasked question. "He's just a friend. Potter's Muggle cousin..." Evan raised an eyebrow. "Great bloke, Evan, he really is. And I probably would be dating him, but... But Cedric and... Every time I sleep, I still see Cedric's dead body."

"Cedric doesn't deserve your grief," Evan said stiffly. "That bastard... if you would have told me he was doing that to you, I swear... I thought you guys broke up that's why I was so-"

"Oh, no, we definitely didn't," Aquila muttered. "Because I'm an idiot. I know he doesn't deserve it, but that doesn't change how I felt about him. Merlin, I was so in love with him. He made me rethink marriage. I wanted to marry him, because I knew that we would have been able to have our own futures. He was going to work in the Ministry, he encouraged Quidditch for me..." She huffed. "And then Cho fucking Chang. Bloody hell, what did I even see in her? She's the worst friend ever."

"And Mum accepted the marriage proposal? Merlin, Simon's a slimey git! I know I was friends with him, but bloody hell, Ella, you can't marry him! He's a right git. Always toyed with his girlfriends. Got sex and left."

She frowned. "That's not even all. He wants to get married over Christmas break. This coming Christmas break."

"What!?" Evan cried, sitting up and staring at her with astonishment.

"Yeah," Aquila muttered. "So I probably would be knocked up before I even get to Seventh Year. Joyous."

"Has mum completely lost her mind?"

"I sure hope so, because this is ridiculous!" Aquila insisted. "I always knew Quidditch was off the table, but this... She just wants the money, you know that. It's always been about gold."

"That's it, you're living with me."

Aquila laughed. "No, I'm not. I don't even know Spanish."

"Yeah, well, I speak English, Rosa speaks English, you'll be fine."

"Is she really pregnant?" Aquila asked him suddenly. "That's what mum said."

Evan frowned. "What? No, we haven't even slept together. But with the war, we just wanted to get as many years together as possible. We both know it could be bad... She's an Order member, too. Her whole family is. They run the branch in Spain."

"Oh... Well, I can't live in Spain... I have Hogwarts - Davis said he was telling Flitwick and I that he was naming me captain since he graduated." She sighed. "But then again, I'd rather be single than have a husband my second term of sixth year, learning Spanish doesn't sound bad either."

Evan laughed. "Well, I mean, I can take you to the Order... You could live with Sirius until school starts-"

"But..." She frowned, thinking of Dudley. She'd never see him. "I don't know, Evan... I don't want to make a scene-"

"Yeah, but you also don't want to get married. So it's either you stay here or you go to Sirius, because I doubt Angelina would like to be contacted this late-"

"It's only eight."

Evan sighed and leaned against her headboard as he crossed his legs in front of him. "Have you pulled the Dad card?"

Aquila snorted. "Last resort. Of course I have. Over dinner, which was how the argument all started. She says it isn't the same thing."

"Bullshit," Evan insisted, running a hand through his shaggy hair. Merlin, did he have stubble? Since when? Aquila didn't even know he hit puberty! "Merlin's balls, Aquila, when did she get mental? I mean, I know she's always talked about it-"

"Yeah, well as soon as you left she was convinced that you were going to die in Spain, and she'd never get any grandchildren out of you, so she started talking to the Zabini family in Milan and some other family - I never listened that far - where I had three brothers that would compete over me. And just yesterday I convinced her they could turn bad, and she agreed it was a bit foolhardy... So, it took two months just to get that. I have a month until school for just one guy, and I don't think I can do it. Not when they keep offering her millions of galleons."

"She knows we don't need them-"

"Yeah, I said that," Aquila admitted. "She didn't listen."

"I'm going to talk to her, and if she doesn't listen, I'm taking you to Sirius."

He rose from the bed and Aquila was after him in an instant, grabbing his arm. "She's already angry-"

"Tough shit," Evan insisted. "You're my little sister. You're not marrying one of the biggest idiots in Hufflepuff. And she doesn't even know him, how can she decide what's best for you. Besides, as far as I'm concerned, you're going to be a celebate nun in Spain and they take that shit seriously."

Aquila giggled as he opened the door, "Evan, please, I-"

"You can either stay here, or listen in but not be seen. Because this is going to be good."

"Ugh," Aquila sighed following him. "How come you always know how to get me to follow you into something that's probably a bad idea?"

"Because I'm your brother. I have to do something cool."

"You look good, you know," Aquila admitted as they walked down the stairs. "Spain's been good to you."

"No, Rosa's been good to you," he winked.

She stopped from following into the dining room, but she heard her mother's exclamation of surprise. Merlin, this was going to be a nightmare. She should have stopped him. Body bind, maybe even a slumber charm. Maybe locking him in her wardrobe while she let him figure out how to get out and that would distract him enough to forget about it. He had come to see her, not her mother. He had come to check in, not argue. Merlin, that was why he left in the first place.


	9. Chapter 9

Merlin, it had been going on for hours. Aquila had half a mind to go in there and tell them to just stop, that it was pointless. Once Euryale realized Otterburn was useless, she had began to bounce other names off of her son, only for him to shoot them down with what he was particularly well known for - blackmail. He had gotten the trait from their mother, being friends with the entire school in order to pick up some dirt on them once they turned on him or his little sister - who he felt an annoying need to coddle. But it was in this moment she was grateful he was so protective over her. Because he knew better than anyone how well she took care of herself - how good she was on a broom and wand. He went to every single match she was in, even competed against her with his Hufflepuff house.

It had been him she had gone to when Cedric had first cheated on her and she found out. It had been him she had nervously explained that she lost her V card to her boyfriend and he had simply shrugged and said, "You used the spell, right, Ella?" He was the best brother she could have asked for. Didn't threaten her boyfriends because he knew she was able to get out before anything bad happened - she had seen plenty of abusive relationships in Slytherin to recognize the signs - and he knew she would do things - like sex - when she was ready. But once her heart was broken, her ex-boyfriend was broken the next day by Evan Black.

And as she cast the silencing charm around the house for the fifth time that night, after the fifth time the argument had died down, only to fire back up again three seconds later, her mother had ran out of people to list.

"Who do you suggest then?" Euryale finally said after a long moment of silence. She could hear both of their heavy breathing, both of them trying to keep their tempers in check. She heard Evan groan in frustration and checked the clock with a small peak into the living room door. Nearly three in the morning. Merlin, he must have been tired.

"No one. Let her decide who she marries. You know that she can do it - make a good choice. If she wants to marry a Muggleborn, let her. If she wants to never marry and become a Playwitch, so what? Let her," Evan insisted. Okay, well, Playwitch was definitely not happening. But she appreciated the notion of being single and just having fun being brought up. "She's sixteen."

"I was sixteen when I-"

"Things were different then," Evan insisted. "You're different than her. She's like dad. She's tough. And you loved dad when you married him. You fell in love in school before you were forced to marry... Aquila doesn't have that. The bloke just died... you can't expect her to bounce right back and fall in love with whoever you throw at her. No one knows her own taste better than Aquila herself, right? So, I think it's entirely pointless."

"I've already written back a few offers," Euryale admitted after a moment. Evan groaned and Aquila soon followed. Wonderful.

"Then I'm taking her to Sirius."

"What?" Euryale cried. "You can't-"

"She's my baby sister and I know these guys, mum," Evan insisted. "I know what they'll do to her and I'm not going to let that happen. So either you tell them you're not interested in their money and their offers, or I'll take her to Sirius and she'll stay with him until she graduates." There was a tense silence and then Euryale gave a huff. But Aquila couldn't tell if that was a bad huff... or a good huff. "You can't keep doing this to her. You promised she'd pick her own guy, and then you force her to be okay with another contract?"

"I'm not letting her marry that Muggle boy-"

"Merlin, mum, she's not even dating him, let alone marrying him!"

"How do you know?" Euryale demanded. Ah, screaming again.

"Because she told me so! And she's telling the truth. After your bloody boyfriend dies, you don't move on right away. Don't force her to move on, either. Diggory was a good guy. While in the end he was not, that doesn't mean she still didn't love him, and ... that Muggle boy - if she does move on and date him, it'll be at her own pace. Believe me, I've seen her relationships, she doesn't let anything happen-"

"He's a bad influence," Euryale insisted. "She snuck out in the middle of the night, went to a party with him, and slept over at his house-"

"So?" Evan asked and Aquila could just picture the confused expression.

"He could have taken her virginity!" Euryale cried. Oh, bloody hell. Aquila flushed and covered her face with her hands like she was in the room with them. Shit, please, Evan, don't tell her... After Quidditch. "No one-"

"If she wants to lose it, she'll lose it," Evan snapped. "What's the point of it? Purity? Bullshit. You know just as well as I that the whole virginity thing is just so that the husband gets what he paid for. And ten million galleons? No girl, not even Aquila, wants to feel like she's just a piece of meat that's to be bought. I'll have you know that every single girl in my year didn't have their V card. Rosa doesn't, but that doesn't mean we've had sex. We haven't, but we've talked about it. I know for a fact that Draco Malfoy's intended isn't a virgin, because she slept with my best friend in school. And I also know for a fact that Malfoy knows about that. It's not as big of a deal as when you were our age-"

"And has she? Aquila?"

"Has she what? Had sex?" Evan laughed, and Aquila prayed to whoever would listen that he wouldn't say anything. "Would that change anything?"

"Yes. Because no one will marry her if she has!" Euryale insisted. What?

"There's this thing called love," Evan stated simply. "I love Rosa, so I don't care that she has slept with someone before me. It's fine. And I guarantee that the only ones that care about it are the guys that like making women feel like shit and call her a whore because she's maybe lost it to the guy she loved. I don't think Aquila has slept with anyone, but that doesn't mean she's not allowed to. It's her body, her decisions. And, in fact, I want her to lose it, because I don't want you to sell it to the highest bidder. At least whoever she does it with will be someone she cares about, not someone she's forced to be with-"

Merlin, were they seriously talking about her sex life. "Has she lost it? Where is she?"

Aquila quickly thought of the repercussions of telling her mother now. Bad case scenario, she'd be grounded and wouldn't be allowed to go to Quidditch - but then Evan would just take her to Sirius... Best case scenario, she gets out of the marriage contracts. But she wouldn't be able to go to Quidditch, and she'd already gotten Dudley to ask his parents.

"She's in the other room, I think. But so what? If you threaten her, I'm taking her to Sirius. One single word and she's gone." Bloody hell, Evan. Okay, she had to choose now. Her mother would be furious, so furious. But maybe if she explained... she still had the engagement ring from Cedric! He never officially asked her, but he had given it to her to think over. Okay, that would do it. That would prove to her mother she wasn't just sleeping around at least.

She quickly flew up the stairs and opened her bedside drawer, finding the diamond ring with her initials engraved on the inside, Cedric's beside the heart that followed. She flew back down the stairs and nearly ran into her mother, who had been looking for her.

"Okay, living room," Aquila said simply, pulling her mother into it. She stood by Evan, glad to have at least one person by her side. She swallowed as her mother crossed her arms.

"Well? Have you ever had sex before?"

"First, let me... explain," Aquila stated, and her mother looked instantly murderous. "Last fall, Cedric was getting ready for the first task. We had just found out it was dragons and... he sort of had already proposed to me." Euryale tilted her head in acknowledgement. So he had asked her for her hand, then. Aquila presented the ring, letting her mother take it and look it over. "He gave me a ring and said that we could get married whenever I wanted. He knew I was young, and that we still had school to finish, so he said there was no pressure for a decision. I told him... I told him yes, that I'd love to get married, but after I graduate."

"And you slept with him for a ring?" Euryale asked, raising an eyebrow.

"No," Aquila insisted. "That was right before he was chosen as champion, the ring. It was the first week of Hogwarts. Um... well," she fidgeted nervously. "I... I wore the ring and we were engaged. I mean, we never announced anything, because we didn't want to. There was too much focus on the Tournament. We wanted to make him win and I helped him as much as I could. We found out it was dragons and... and I really thought he was going to die. He was practically terrified of going to the first task... Yes, we slept with each other. It was my first time, and that was it. We didn't have sex all the time after that. It was just that one time, and when he survived the first task, we were a lot closer. There were a lot of close times where we almost did, but ... that was it, really. We were in different houses, so it was difficult to find time together, and with the second task, him now knowing how to get the egg to tell him the clue, it was so hectic. And then he started to see Cho, and I realized that before we had even slept together, he was casually seeing her on the side... And I refused to let him near me after that... It was just the one time, and I haven't slept with anyone else."

Her mother stared at her daughter blankly before looking at Evan. She didn't seem to know what to say and glanced down at the ring in her hands, reading the engraving on the inside. "I knew he was going to propose to you... I really liked him-I could see him as a son-in-law. And then... I never even knew you were engaged - that you had said yes-"

"We wanted to wait until after the Tournament to announce it, and then all that Cho stuff happened and we were on the verge of breaking up, but he insisted that we just wait until after the tournament... and I was just stupid. It was a stupid mistake-"

"No, it wasn't," Evan insisted. "You fell in love with the guy, you wanted to sleep with him, you could. It's not a mistake if you meant it at the time. So, don't apologize for it. Mother's a grown woman. She can handle it."

"You knew she slept with him!" Euryale accused her son.

"She did tell me first," Evan replied honestly. "Absolutely scared shitless because of you." Euryale seemed surprised at that. "Thoroughly convinced that she was going to be disowned because of one night. What did I tell you, Aquila?"

"If I was disowned, I could live with him or Sirius," Aquila said quietly. "And that if I was disowned, he'd take me to a male strip club so that I could have sex with as many guys as I wanted." She couldn't help but smirk at that. He made her feel better. He was her brother - he could always cheer her up. And at least he wasn't the protective brother that her friends sometimes had.

"You promote her behavior?" Euryale cried, waving her hand at her daughter.

"I've slept with seven girls in my life," Evan shrugged. "There's nothing wrong with it. She didn't do anything she didn't want to do."

Aquila bit her lip nervously, glancing at her brother as their mother seemed to take too long to respond. But she didn't want to speak. Speaking could potentially cause the volcano to erupt... for the sixth time tonight. She held her breath as her mother opened her mouth and then shut it again.

"That Muggle boy is a bad influence on you, Aquila."

"Dudley has influenced me in no way I would have acted before," Aquila insisted. "I've told you time and again that he's a good person-"

"You slept in his bed!"

"He was on the couch!" Aquila cried. She sighed and forced her temper away. "I swear nothing happened for the eighteenth time."

"Merlin, Aquila. I can't get you to marry any respectable man now-"

"Good," Aquila insisted, a smirk touching her lips. "I don't want to marry anyone. I've been telling you that since I was five. Now you're finally listening."

"The Dark Lord-"

"Isn't our lord," Evan snapped. He grabbed Aquila's arm. "We're leaving."

"No," Aquila insisted. "I can't- I have Quidditch trials to attend, the match- I can't just leave overnight-"

"I'm only in England until tomorrow," he insisted. "I have a portkey to catch by three tomorrow."

She pulled him from the room to the upstairs. "Sleep here. It's already three in the morning. You can sleep in my room with me. I miss you-"

"How touching," he sniffed. "Ravenclaws."

"Hufflepuffs," she returned bitterly. She heard their mother protest behind them, but paid no mind as she shut the door and transfigured her bed so that it was large enough for her and her brother. She sank down on her favored side and shrugged towards her brother. "You know, I was going to wait until after Quidditch to tell her about Cedric and I."

"Yeah, well, she needed to know before she finalized anything."

"True." Aquila paused as he brother sank down beside her. She suddenly felt like a child again, when she had her nightmares and her brother would always be there to wake her up and tell her they weren't real. They had shared a room up until he had gotten his letter, and then he had insisted that she needed to sleep in her own room. Nine years old, terrified of her nightmares, she had obeyed. She didn't even know if he knew she had never gotten rid of them. But then she thought of the time she had slept in Dudley's bed... Not a single nightmare. And none for a few days following. But she had a feeling about tonight - about her staying up so late that she was beyond tired, so her defenses were down.

"I worry about you all the time, you know," Aquila told her brother carefully. "About if you're safe, if you're happy-"

"I'm in the safest place in Spain. I live in a Muggle community. It's very remote, and Rosa lives with me. It's quite safe. We don't use magic at all, we don't want to draw attention to ourselves." He brushed his hair away. "What about you?"

"We're as safe as we can get for living down the road from Harry Potter. A dementor attack a week ago." Evan glanced at her sharply. "Potter used a patronus charm before we could get any serious damage. That's how I met him and his cousin, Dudley. Nasty bit of damage to Dudley, though. And I was instantly friends with his mother after I helped cure the loopiness from the dementor... And then, well, that's pretty much all the danger... But I am happy here. The people are nice, but I haven't met any of the other neighbors. They don't have any other children my age... But there are some people in the neighborhood over."

"Mum is a bit mental, isn't she? Bloody hell, I've never noticed it before."

"She's just worried about us," Aquila muttered. "You shouldn't have yelled with her for so long... You could have lost your voice."

"It was worth it."

"Thank you," Aquila said sincerely. "I really mean it. Thank you."

"If you still want to go to Sirius in the morning, I'll take you," Evan promised. "If you ever want to go, all you have to do is apparate there-"

"I don't have my apparation license yet," she sighed. "But I'll probably Floo or something... I just don't want to leave just yet. If she starts talking about it again, I'll escape for a few days and see what happens... I just don't want to leave her. We're all she has, Ev."

"Yeah, but she's past listening."

Aquila couldn't help but agree. "So, how did you meet Rosa? What does she look like?"

They talked for a while more and Aquila settled under the covers as she listened to her brother talk to her, as if telling her a story of some prince and princess in some far off land. It made her feel younger, and she knew she'd miss him just as much as she did when he first disappeared to Spain when she woke up in the morning. She drifted off to speak as he spoke about where their wedding was taking place - Barcelona in a beautiful cathedral - and he detailed every facet of Rosa for her, so well that Aquila could almost picture her sister in law.

And then the nightmares took over, ruining her good feeling about the night.


	10. Chapter 10

She gasped as though she had been drowning when she awoke. There was a figure next to her, stealing all the blankets, but only his arm was on her side, of which she was clinging to desperately. At the abrupt change in her body, she hadn't realized she was sitting up until he sprung up as well, his wand out. "What's wrong?"

"Nightmare, I'm fine," she said after a moment. Aquila tried to steady her beating heart but couldn't.

"Nightmare?" Evan asked, his voice heavy with sleep as he dropped his wand. "Like the ones from when you were little?"

"No... not really. These are... Cedric."

"Oh," he murmured. He seemed to understand because he grabed his sister and hugged her tightly. "Come on, it's like eight in the morning. Talk about it. It'll help."

It wouldn't, but she did anyway. She explained Cedric's dead gaze staring at her and as she tried to look away, he was just everywhere, blaming her for making him unhappy, for making him die. And she knew that it wasn't her fault he died. She knew that, but her subconscious mind didn't. Evan eventually got her to go back to sleep, and she refused to sleep without clutching his arm in silent support. She thought only briefly of the fact that he'd probably lose feeling in it as it fell asleep, but was too tired to care.

When she next awoke, her door was being opened and a figure entered her room. She turned over in her bed, moving Evan's arm out of the way as she reached for her blankets. "What, Mum?"

"Oh, uh, sorry-"

Aquila's eyes shot open as she spotted Dudley and he seemed rather embarrassed, shuffling back and nearly running into her doorframe as he turned to leave. "Dudley!" she said in surprise. "Wait-" But he was already gone. And then she realized what it looked like. A strange man in her bed, as her brother was supposed to be in Spain, and her, well, sleeping on him. She hurriedly threw back the covers, ignoring Evan's groans, and grabbed her wand before she sprinted down the stairs to catch up with Dudley. "Dudley, wait, it's not what it-"

Dudley turned to face her suddenly, stopping in front of her house, in the middle of the sidewalk. "It's okay, Aquila. I mean, I get it. I'm not your sort. And-" he shrugged uncomfortably. "I was starting to really like you and-"

"Dudley, it's not -"

He interrupted her again, and Aquila huffed in annoyance. "I'm pretty sure what I saw-"

"Oh, for Merlin's sake!" Aquila cried. She grabbed his arms suddenly and forced him to look at her. "He's my brother."

He raised an eyebrow, "Okay, that's really weird-"

She groaned, "No, you don't... Okay, he came back from Spain last night. We were talking and fell asleep in my bed. It's ... He's my brother, Dudley. Not... my boyfriend or anything. I promise."

"Oh," Dudley muttered. He seemed particularly embarrassed and Aquila gave him a small smile of amusement.

"I know, we don't really look much alike-"

"Bloody hell, where's the fire?" Aquila turned in annoyance to see her brother standing in the doorway of their home, his hair tangled and his body alert as he clutched his wand.

"Put that away, you idiot. People might see you. And zip up your pants. No one wants to see that." Evan ducked out of the door quickly to do as requested. She turned to Dudley and gave a small sigh. "Sorry... Uh, for the misunderstanding."

"Er, no, sorry for, uh, barging in like that. Your mum said you were in there when I stopped by."

"Oh, well, what time is it?" Aquila asked, confused.

"About noon."

Her eyes widened. "Oh..." Three hours until Evan left. She bit her lip. "Well, you can stay... you were obviously over for a reason. Have lunch with us. Unless you've already eat-"

"Sure," Dudley interrupted, shrugging lightly. She gave him a bright smile and pulled his arm towards the house. Aquila noticed that her mother was particularly pleased with herself and rolled her eyes. Of course. Her mother wanted to fend Dudley off in any way possible. When she saw Dudley, she scowled around her cup of tea.

"Evan, this is Dudley, Potter's cousin. Dudley, this is my brother, Evan. He's engaged to some Spanish chick that I'm dying to meet."

"Nice to meet you. Uh, sorry for the misunderstanding, I think."

"I actually thought you were that Lynch bloke," Dudley admitted. Aquila grimaced, shooting Dudley a look of disbelief as Evan laughed in glee.

"Yeah, I like this kid," Evan declared. He gestured for Dudley to come further into the house, shutting the front door. "Right, Polly?"

Polly suddenly appeared and Dudley doubled back in surprise at the sight of the creature.

"This is Polly," Aquila introduced. "He's our house-elf."

"Oh, he's..." Dudley seemed at a loss for words as Polly bowed. "Not what I expected."

"I know what you mean," Aquila informed him quietly. Addressing the elf, she bent down so her height wasn't as different to the elf. "Polly, do you think you can make us some lunch?"

"What would Miss like from the kitchen, Miss?" Polly asked. "Polly is happy to serve Miss and Master Black, and their friend."

"What do you want for lunch?" she asked Dudley. "Polly can make absolutely anything. Best cook I've ever known, I even had him make me real Belgium chocolate from scratch-"

"Polly was most pleased that Miss Black liked the chocolate-" Polly interceded.

"Yes," Aquila nodded. "It was a bit of a war we had going on when I was younger. Anyway, what would you like?" Aquila moved further into the kitchen and surveyed the fridge before she opened the cabinets. "Tea, water, firewhiskey," she informed Dudley.

"Water's fine."

Polly immediately got to work. "And food?" Aquila questioned. She glanced at her mother and Evan, as well, but Euryale seemed intent on ignoring her daugher and Evan just shrugged, reaching for a glass and a bottle of firewhiskey. "Um, don't you have an international portkey?"

"Yes, hence why there's alcohol involved."

Aquila snorted, much to her mother's displeasure, and glanced at Dudley. "How's sandwiches?"

"Yeah, that's fine."

"Polly will make everyone's taste!" Polly insisted, shooing Aquila away. She patted the elf on the head and glanced at her mother, but the woman took her tea cup and disappeared into the garden.

"Good, she's gone," Evan said quickly. "We can still get out while we can."

Aquila smacked her brother on the chest. "You're leaving anyway. I told you, I'm staying."

"You were leaving?" Dudley asked, confused.

"He wants me to stay with my uncle, Potter's godfather," Aquila informed Dudley as she gestured for him to join her at the table. "Of course, I can't just leave in the middle of the night. I technically can't run away until I'm seventeen. Because then I don't get my inheritance."

"Your... inheritance?" Dudley questioned. Evan leaned against the counter to the kitchen, his glass of firewhiskey already half empty.

"Stuff my dad left me in his will," Aquila waved off handed. She bit her lip, tilting her head to the side as she looked him over. He was dressed differently. His shirt was... a polo and his lower half was covered in khaki shorts. "You dressed differently," she stated carefully. "And you did something to your hair." It wasn't spiked. It was almost... natural, maybe? No product at all. She was aware she probably looked a sight herself and ran her fingers through her hair.

He turned pink slightly. "I, er, yeah, I guess."

"It's nice," Aquila commented. "But that doesn't explain why you're here. Not that you aren't welcome at any time, of course. I'm just curious."

"You're always curious," Evan commented. "And it gets you into trouble."

Aquila gave her brother a heartstopping smile. "Of course."

"Er, well, I talked to Mum and Dad. They said I could go to the Quidditch try-outs."

Aquila absolutely lit up. "Brilliant! Remind me to bake a cake for them."

"You don't even know how to bake a cake," Evan informed her.

"Stop being pessimistic," Aquila admonished. She rose and moved towards a small table by the couch. Opening the box atop, she selected a quill and parchment before scribbling a letter to Angelina. Merlin, she needed her owl back.

"Where's Prometheus?"

"Angelina's," she murmured. Just as she finished the letter, Polly was levitating a plate of sandwiches in the air ahead of him and the plate fell onto the table before dividing into three smaller plates. Dudley seemed amazed by that. "Thank you, Polly, that's very kind of you. Would you mind pouring me a glass of pumpkin juice, as well?"

"Right away, Miss. And Mister Dudley requests water still?"

"Uh, yes... please?"

But Aquila felt Dudley's eyes on her as she strode to the fireplace, grabbing a handful of green powder in the pot beside it. She threw it into the flames and Dudley jumped in surprise as they turned green. "Angelina Johnson!"

It only took a few seconds before the connection was made and Aquila dropped the parchment into the fire, watching as it was engulfed, and then it disappeared. Aquila dusted off her hands and turned with a smile towards the two men in her dining room. "Right, where were we?"

"Pessimism?" Evan offered. He slid into a chair across from Dudley, taking a sandwich and looking at it thoughtfully. "Oh, no, before that it was Quidditch."

"Yeah, so I'm not quite sure what the plan is," Dudley admitted.

"Oh, well, let's see. If you want to go to Angelina's beforehand and meet everyone - it would be a lot less awkward and hopefully the twins won't try to prank you-" Dudley seemed to hesitate at that, "-you'd meet here and she'd apparate you there. Apparation is our teleportation, I guess. Um, and then the rest would be taken care of from that point on."

"But like, clothes and whatnot. What do I need to bring?"

Aquila paused as she took a bite of the sandwich in front of her. Cheese and beef. Delicious. "Well, I'm bringing nine jerseys - one for each day. You can wear whatever you'd like. Jerseys, t-shirts, whatever. If you want me to transfigure jerseys or something, I can-"

"She's amazing at them," Evan input. "Made me an exact replica of a 1423 Angelsey jersey for my birthday last year. Wicked. I still have it."

"Do you?" Aquila asked, surprised. "Good. I spent weeks researching that." She glanced at Dudley. "The great thing about magic, is that you can have anything you want if you know the right spells. Knowledge is power."

"I'll have to get back to you on that," Dudley stated, biting out of his own sandwich. He seemed surprised and flipped open the bread. Once he swallowed, he asked, "How did, uh, Polly know I liked turkey?"

Aquila grinned, making him look over at her. "Magic. Elves are known for their need to please. They're quite sneaky creatures, but they never get something wrong." She ate another bite of her own sandwich, savoring the taste as she watched Dudley.

"So, mate, do you usually just walk into Aquila's room?" Evan asked.

Aquila groaned, "Evan!"

"Er, not really," Dudley asked carefully. "Your mum said to-"

"Yes, and I'm sure she knew full well what you'd see and interpret," Aquila interrupted. She glanced in the direction of the garden. "Honestly, she's just huffy because we messed with her beauty sleep."

"Oh," Dudley said uncomfortably.

"So, that means you should watch your back for a few days," Evan stated casually. He sipped his firewhiskey. "Muggle, huh?"

"Yeah," Dudley answered. "Er, wizard?"

"Of course," Evan stated with a smirk. Aquila shot him a glare. "So, any hobbies?"

They made uncomfortable small talk until Polly presented Evan a small ring that was quite bland. Evan smirked as he took it and Aquila rose, giving him a hug. "You'll write, right?" Aquila made him promise. "Because I haven't heard from you in eons."

"Stop being so dramatic," Evan chided. "I'm going to see you at the wedding."

"But mother said we weren't..." Aquila frowned, stepping back. "When is it?"

"Saturday after your birthday."

She grinned, "I'll be there." She kissed her brother's cheek before Evan moved to shake Dudley's hand.

"Right, keep Aquila in line," he told Dudley firmly. "She gets a little overbearing sometimes. I'm sure you've noticed. Now, if mum ever tells you she's off to marry someone, it's a lie. And if you ever hurt her, I will not hesitate to arrive unannounced, got it?"

"Got it," Dudley nodded, stepping away from Evan as he himself moved back.

"Hershey," Evan stated clearly. Then he paused, ignoring the ring glowing in his hand. "What even is a Hersh-?" And he was gone in a flash and Dudley's eyes widened in surprise.

"That's a portkey," Aquila informed the surprised Muggle. She watched as Polly cleaned off the table. "It's the safest way to travel, and the most sure you'll get to the destination you request... well, unless you get the wrong portkey on accident... well, you'd have to be pretty unobservant." She shrugged slightly but glanced towards the back door. "Do you have plans for the day?"

"Not really, no," Dudley admitted.

She grinned. "Perfect."


	11. Chapter 11

Merlin, this could be bad. She had absolutely any idea what he thought of heights, nor of high speeds, but she hoped to Merlin it was... good. So when Angelina floo'd over, they walked in silence to Potter's house, joining the Order entourage with a smirk.

"Aquila!"

Heads snapped in Aquila's direction and she smirked as she spotted the bubblegum haired woman. "Tonks!" She hugged the six year elder woman heartily, before looking her over. "Merlin, Auror training's been good to you!"

"We're taking you and the Muggle too, right?" she asked.

"Er, I should probably tell him the change of plan, first, but yes." Tonks glanced at Angelina and gave the dark skinned woman a nod of acknowledgement. "Angelina's going with us, too."

"The more defense the better," Tonks grinned. Aquila pushed past the woman and into the house where Remus, Kingsley, and Mad-Eye were talking to Vernon and Petunia. When Petunia spotted Aquila, she squeaked and rose, rushing towards the girl.

"You make sure he doesn't fall," Petunia requested firmly.

Aquila waved off her concern. "I'm an excellent flier, Petunia. I promise he won't. Where is he?"

"His room," Petunia informed her. "His things and such are in his bag."

"Wonderful," Aquila grinned. "Thank you, again, to you and Vernon, for letting him attend. He won't regret it, I promise that."

Petunia's green eyes watched the teen as she smiled nervously. "Oh, I have no doubt about that. Now, if anything goes wrong, or he gets hurt or sick-"

"I'll contact you directly," Aquila finished, already having this conversation with the woman. "I promise he'll be in good hands."

Petunia nodded and kissed the girl's cheek before Aquila followed Tonks up the stiars. "Potter ready yet? We're waiting on him."

"Packing that attrocious trunk," Tonks giggled. "Hurry, hurry, you still need to get your things."

"Yes, mum," Aquila said in a dull voice before she knocked lightly on Dudley's door. It opened immediately and she saw Dudley in one of the plain jerseys she had transfigured for him. She grinned upon seeing it. "It fits!" She assessed it, making him turn around, much to his embarrassment. "Awesome, I was worried I missed a spell or something that automatically corrected size."

"It's wicked, thanks."

She bit her lip as he turned to face her. "Right, so there's been a change of plans. How do you feel about roller coasters?" Unsure of where this was going, he shrugged.

"Love 'em, why?" His tone of suspicion was just what she was looking for. "Are we... bloody hell, we're riding that broom thing, aren't we?"

"Flying," she corrected. "And yes. Er, you're with me. And I already promised your mother that you will not fall so you better follow my instructions."

"But I can't... like fly. I'm not magical."

"Oh, you won't be the one flying. I will," Aquila grinned, tugging on his arm. "I need to get my broom. But you're flying with me, doc."

"What?"

"If you're going to watch it, you might as well feel like what they do. Besides, it's only until we get to London." His apprehensiveness was not lost on her. She gave him a reassuring smile and took his bag. "Right, this is going in my trunk, and ... yes, be sure to wear comfortable shoes..." He nodded and got to put his shoes on while Aquila opened the door to Privet Drive, Number 4. A gust of wind blew her hair back and she grinned to herself. Oh, it had been months since she'd flown. She was not going to let this moment pass without some fun. Her trunk was resting on the doorstep, her broom beside it. Grinning, she opened her trunk and tossed Dudley's bag inside, before sealing it with a sticking charm. She was not letting her knickers fly across the Thames.

Soon the Order began to file out and they stood as a group on the sidewalk.

"Nymphadora-" Mad-Eye started.

"Don't call me Nymphadora!" Tonks spat at her Auror head. Aquila pulled Dudley beside her as the witch's hair turned red.

"You take Black's trunk. Remus, you have Potter's."

Aquila gave her trunk up and pulled Dudley behind her. "Right, so I'm going to need you to sit behind me, so I can drive. Now, you hold onto me and don't let go, got it?" Dudley nodded, understanding this was life or death. "And you put your feet here-" She pointed to the metal prongs by the broom brussles. She climbed onto her broom and floated beside Dudley, scooting forward slightly. Lowering herself a little bit, she was just low enough for him to get on. He did so, his arms circling her.

"Mmm, you smell good," Aquila stated. He was wearing that cologne and Merlin, she loved it.

"Er, thanks."

"Right, you feel like you're getting sick, you better not get sick on me," she stated firmly as she gently rose in the air. "We're going to go pretty fast to stay in formation, so you better not chicken out."

"And if you fall," Angelina said as she got on her broom beside him, winking. "I'll catch you."

"And don't look down unless you can handle it." Aquila gripped the handle of her broom as everyone else mounted and she crossed her legs under her, since Dudley's were in the holders. She shifted slightly so she was comfortable and Dudley's arms tightened around her as they rose in the air until they were as high as the rooftops. Mad-Eye ordered them into position and Aquila glanced at Potter to her left smirking. "Race you, Potter."

"I think I'm a bit faster, Black," Potter returned, smirking back. Oh, it was on.

"Right, away!" Mad-Eye called and then they were off.

"Bloody hell," Dudley breathed, his body flush against hers with the speed. His chin rested on her shoulder and she couldn't help but laugh.

"You're lucky I'm not doing any tricks," she called over the wind. "I usually do."

"You do this all the time?"

"Mmmhmm," she hummed, keeping Potter in her peripheral vision. Her wand was securely stuck in her boot, but she could get it in a second if she needed. Angelina, however, did the tricks. She barrel rolled under them and Dudley did look down. She could tell because he stiffened slightly when he realized they were above the cloudline.

"How long of a flight is this?" Dudley asked.

"About an hour!" They turned sharply and Dudley tensed, steadying himself before he fell. Maybe she should have stuck him to the broom.

Nearly ten minutes into the flight, Aquila's hands started to go numb. She gently sat up, her broom still going the same speed and stretched out her hands.

"You aren't even touching it!"

"Don't need to. It knows which way to go," Aquila informed him. "It'll keep going forward." Once her hands were feeling again, she zipped forward as she suddenly dipped and became the head of the group. "We switch like geese, so we don't look like resting targets," Aquila informed him. They veered off course suddenly, heading south. "Throw the dogs off our scent."

"Dogs?"

"Bad guys," she stated simply. "We don't say their name when we're out in the open. Brings bad luck." They went back on hours and for another ten minutes, she led until Remus took over. She took the spot beside him, Potter staying in the middle at all times. "Say, Remus!" The man glanced at her briefly to let her know he was listening. "He knows I'm coming?"

"He's going to," Remus called.

Shit. That was going to be weird. She had never met her uncle. Never. She just knew he was innocent. Knew he was Order headquarters.

"Who's he?" Dudley questioned.

"Uncle," Aquila said quietly. She didn't know if he heard her, but the rest of the trip was silent. When they reached London, they skimmed the water of the Thames, Aquila laughing in glee as Mad-Eye got low enough to cause some water in his wake, hitting them square in the face. They flew past a ferry and as soon as they reached a park, they prepared to land. "Right, hold on tight!" She got low enough to almost hit the trees and came to an abrupt halt, causing Dudley to knock into her. He slid off the broom and she followed, clutching it in excitement as she rounded on him. "Well? Like it?"

"Wicked," he insisted.

She nodded and glanced towards Tonks as she got her trunk back, dragging it towards Mad-Eye as he delivered them to the Headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. Bloody hell... She read the slip with a nod and glanced towards Dudley as he did the same. He would be obliviated of the name later - not that she was telling him that. She took his arm and they carefully crossed the road to Number 12 Grimmauld Place. He couldn't tell when the houses began to pull apart, but she knew when he began to see it because he gasped.

She grinned as she glanced over her shoulder at him and followed Dudley through the door. She pressed her lips to her fingers as she glanced at Dudley, and he nodded, understanding to be quiet. She grabbed her wand and made her trunk levitate in front of her as they walked past a door where people were arguing. Just as she was about to get to it, Tonks tripped and all hell broke loose. Loud, screeching noises sounded, crying, "Mudblood! How dare they besmirch the ancient and noble House of Black! How dare such filth enter these doors-"

"That's grandma," she informed Dudley. "She was lovely."

"That portrait is talking," Dudley said with surprise.

"Mudblood! Mudbloods in my house! Werewolves! How dare they enter-"

"Oh, shut up, you old hag," a voice cried. The curtains shut abruptly and Aquila turned, recognizing the man. Merlin, he looked just like her own father. His long black hair wavy and his gray eyes. He only saw Harry though and hugged his godson heartily.

"Sirius," Harry stated, hugging the man back. "Merlin, look at you!"

"Look at you!" Sirius returned. "Look more and more like your father every day!"

"Ella! Darling!" Mrs. Weasley. Aquila smiled at the red-haired woman behind her uncle and hugged her tightly. "My, look at you! It's been ages since I've seen you!"

"Molly," Aquila greeted. "Goodness, you seem to be getting younger."

"Oh, nonsense," Molly waved her off. "And who is this, Aquila?"

Aquila glanced at Dudley, biting her lip. "Right, this is Dudley. He's Potter's cousin. He's going to Quidditch trials with me tomorrow, but we came with you lot for the easier travel."

"Oh! Welcome!" Mrs. Weasley engulfed Dudley in a hug and the boy seemed at a loss before slowly hugging the woman back. "We love having friends over! Now, you're bunking with Harry and Ron, I hope you don't mind. We only have so many cleared out rooms. Aquila, darling, you'll be with Angelina and Tonks."

"Smashing," Aquila smiled. "Oh, and Dudley, be sure not to touch anything hanging around. We haven't quite looked over everything yet."

"Dinner will be in a half hour," Molly stated simply, shooing them away. She took Dudley's arm and led him up the stairs, and as soon as they reached the first landing, there were two cries of "Harry!"

"You're going to wake the portrait again, Weasley," Aquila sighed, pushing past them. "Say, Weasley, where's your lot's room?"

"Second door on the left," Ron called to her carelessly. She rolled her eyes and glanced at Dudley as they went to the designated room.

"Right, that's Ronald Weasley, the ginger. He's Potter's best mate. And the girl is Hermione Granger. She's bloody brilliant. She's Potter's best mate too. And you'll probably see Ginny, Ron's little sister. She has a complete crush on Potter but he's blind." She glanced around the room, seeing Weasley's Chudley Cannon's posters lining the walls. "Weasley's already decorated, I see. These are the Chudley Cannons. Horrible team." She set down her trunk as she spotted his bed and the uncharacteristic stack of letters assigned to Potter on the other made one. "This is your bed," she informed him. She took his bag out and placed it at the foot. "I have yet to find mine, but I'll find you before dinner starts. I hate to leave you, but you'll meet Potter's friends -" She trailed off as said friends entered. "Er, right, that's my cue. See you soon. Sorry!" She gave his arm a squeeze before she dashed out the door.

She found Angelina making out with a twin she sincerely hoped was George and groaned. "Alright, Angelina, break it up-"

"Oi, Black, I'm kissing my girlfriend here, mate-"

"Yeah, and I'm trying to find my room, so I can put my trunk and broom inside."

"Across from ours, beautiful," Fred stated as he exited his own room. Right, then. Aquila rolled her eyes.

"Go romp with Alicia, Weasley."

"Oi!" Aquila just laughed and entered her own room. It wasn't magnificent by any means. The walls were just as dark as the rest of the house and the bedding was a deep purple on each matching bed. She spotted Tonks, but moved to claim hers before Angelina named one. She set her trunk down at the foot of it and her broom soon followed. Merlin's beard, Sirius hadn't even glanced at her. Did he not even know about her? She was two when he was chucked in prison. A long time ago, but it wasn't like he could forget his neice, right?

They had never met, they hadn't... ever met. Merlin, and she was going to run away here just a few weeks ago? She ran her fingers over the edge of her trunk before tucking her broom away inside it. Angelina entered a minute later with George and that was definitely Aquila's cue to leave, yet again.

"Remember, dinner's in about twenty five minutes," Aquila chided.

"Oh, we'll finish in time," Angelina smirked before going back to snog George.

"And not on my bed!" Aquila cried as they moved towards it. She slammed the door shut in exasperation before moving back towards Potter's door. Dudley looked extremely uncomfortable as he sat there on his bed as Hermione Granger prattled on about something. He had no idea what she was talking about.

"Granger, if you're still reciting text books, and this coming from a Ravenclaw, you should probably be quiet." Granger closed her mouth and glanced towards Aquila. Weasley and Potter were on a bed talking heatedly about something. She gave an easy smile to Dudley. "Right, since George and Angelina are probably doing more than snogging right now, I've been kicked out of my room. So, let's leave the cherished Golden Trio to themselves."

Dudley seemed highly relieved with that. "Yeah, I agree."

"We'll find Fred. He's probably up to no-"

"Come on, don't you want to hear the Order meeting?"

It was a good idea while it lasted, and then that blasted furball ruined everything.

"This is why I have an owl," Aquila muttered. Granger shot her a glare.

"Crookshanks is more of a companion than an owl!"

"Tell that to Potter," Aquila smirked. She glanced at Fred, winking. "Freddie, darling, this is Dudley. Mind if we join you while Angelina romps with your more handsome self?"

"Am I allowed to show you new products?"

"Of course," Aquila grinned. She dragged Dudley along and he sank down on one of the twins beds. "You would have bunked in here, but Molly knows better. It's absolutely dangerous. The twins are quite explosive when they're inventing."

"You invent?" Dudley asked in interest.

"Of course! Why, since the wee age of three we were pranking the house of the humble family of Weasley." Aquila rolled her eyes at Fred's antics. "My uglier self and I - and he is rather uglier, isn't he, Aquila?" She shook her head behind Fred's back and Dudley snorted. "Yes, I quite agree. Anyway, Georgie and I have been selling products to students of Hogwarts going on seven years now. It breaks my heart, it does, that this is our last year to try the products out on ickle firsties. It's the poltergeist that's kept us in business for so long. If he didn't take responsibility for half of our products gone wrong, why, Gonnie would have kicked us out years ago!"

"And Gonnie is...?"

"Our Transfiguration teacher," Aquila input. "And Peeves the Poltergeist just likes getting in trouble, Fred. He doesn't take your bad products credit just to take the credit. He likes it when the teachers yell at him because they can't do anything."

"Ah, you see, our latest invention is brilliant! Fantastic! It'll blow you youngling's minds!" Fred rummaged in a trunk by his bed and pulled out a small black looking object. "This beautiful masterpiece that was quite brilliant, if Georgie and I say so ourselves, and is designed specifically for the greasy dungeon bat himself - Professor Snape."

"Oh, Merlin. You do realize that he's going to murder you and stuff your body into the Gryffindor points glass?"

"Ah, but it'll be worth it," Fred insisted. He presented it to Dudley. "It's perfectly safe. George and I tested it out ourselves. Go on, eat it. Just like a jelly bean-"

"What does it do?" Dudley asked.

"You have no idea how the magical properties of that will affect him," Aquila reasoned.

"Ah, but we do. We took it to a Muggle shop just down the road." Fred winked at her. "Obliviation spell afterwards, of course-"

"Fred you can get in serious trouble for that!" Aquila protested.

"It was worth it. This beauty, as you so beauitfully asked, is to give you the appearance of our dear Potions Master. It only lasts ten minutes, but it will drive Snape crazy."

"Don't eat that before dinner," Aquila requested gently. "Professor Snape is here - I heard him when we came in. He'll no doubt be having dinner with us."

"All the better reason to eat it!" Fred insisted.

"After people are sent off to bed," Aquila returned. "He doesn't even know anyone yet, don't start him off on the bad food."

"She does have a point," Dudley input. He held out the black candy to Fred and the Weasley took it with a sigh of defeat. "After dinner."

"Oo, I like this one," Fred stated with a grin. Fred let his long ginger hair fall in his face as he put the black bean back in place.

"So, you're friends with the Ireland team too, then?"

"No, that's just Aquila. She's mates with the whole lot. I'm more on-again off-again friends with Lynch. Angelina's closer to them than most of us," Fred shrugged, but obviously pleased with the topic change.

"You make it sound like a romance, Fred," Aquila laughed. "Oh, Aidan! I'm your friend right now, right, Aidan?" Her voice was a high pitched one and extremely breathy as though she was under the effects of a love potion. "My name's Fred, Aidan-"

"Oi, I'm not like that."

"You are on the inside!" Aquila accused. Dudley laughed at Fred's indignant expression. "Don't even try to deny it."

"Oi!" he cried. "If Alicia didn't say I couldn't hit you with a pillow, I would be hitting you with a pillow."

"I'll be watching my drinks, then," Aquila quipped. "I can't trust you as far as I can throw you."

"I can throw you farther, hence I'm the better beater, Black."

"Better beater?" Aquila barked out a laugh, rolling her eyes. "Sure, Weasley."

A shrill cry of Mrs. Weasley's "_Dinner!_" had them up and leading the crowd down the stairs. Aquila kept close to Dudley, as she could tell he was feeling a little out of his world, and since they were in the front of the crowd, nearly crashed into Professor Snape on his way to leave. The man stopped suddenly and sneered down at them, making them all halt.

"Professor Snape," Aquila greeted, far braver than the Gryffindors behind her it seemed.

He intoned his head slightly, "Miss Black." And then he was walking away.

"Bloody hell, he's a bit scary, isn't he?" Dudley muttered.

"That's Professor Snape," Aquila informed him. "Brilliant Potions Master."

"Brilliant?" Ron echoed. "He's a git."

"No, he's really not. He's the highest ranked N.E.W.T. student to ever grace Hogwarts, and he's probably got the best teaching methods."

"Teaching methods? He deducts points from Gryffindor for just breathing wrong!" Fred cried.

Aquila grinned behind her towards the Gryffindors. "It's not my fault you're in Gryffindor and don't have, as a collective whole, enough brains to make up a first year Ravenclaw." When they entered the dining room, the feast was already laid out and Order members that resided at Grimmauld Place were seated around the table. At the head was Sirius, and the other head was Arthur, and Tonks, Lupin, and Molly were scattered about. Aquila sat beside Tonks with a smile and Dudley chose the seat beside her.

Potter chose the seat closest to Sirius and she could just begin to hear the murmurs of their private conversation.

"Where's Angelina, Fred? And your brother?"

"Oi, I'm George!" Fred cried. "Honestly, woman!"

"Fine, where's Fred, George?" Molly said, her temper ticking as her twin son smiled at her brightly.

"Only kidding, I am Fred. He and Angelina are talking Quidditch tactics for next years team. She's Captain."

"And you didn't stick around?" Molly asked suspiciously.

"And miss your cooking?" Ron piped up, coming to his brother's rescue. "Honestly, I'd rather eat than play Quidditch."

As they began to pass around dishes, Dudley whispered in her direction. "There's no... like, bat wings or dogweed in this, right?"

She laughed, "No. It's all normal - everything you see here can be made in the Muggle world."

He grew less apprehensive about the food and tried it. Seemingly pleased with what he got, and even more pleased when it wasn't foul, he ate heartily.

"Oi! Black, you could have told us dinner started."

Aquila rolled her eyes, but spoke the same time Sirius did. "I wasn't going to interrupt that heated Quidditch debate-" she started just as Sirius began with, "Not my job to retrieve you-"

There was silence a moment as her and Sirius made eye contact before Aquila continued, glancing back to George. "It's not like we didn't save you a plate," Aquila finished quietly. She cleared her throat and turned back to her own plate, feeling uncomfortable as her uncle's eyes stared at her.

"So, I don't believe I've met the new comers," Sirius said at last.

"This is Dudley Dursley," Molly introduced with a smile. "And you know Aquila-"

"Black," Sirius finished apprehensively. "Muggleborn?"

"Pureblood," Aquila corrected stiffly. She sipped from her pumpkin juice, feeling the tension in the air.

"Which one of my cousins had you?"

Aquila swallowed the juice and set it down, hesitating before she replied. "None. Your brother, Regulus, was my father."

She heard a few forks scraping their plates as silence swallowed the room. Molly chose to continue on with the introductions. "And this is Angelina Johnson. She's in the same year as the twins. Gryffindor, right, sweetheart?"

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley," Angelina answered. She glanced towards Aquila worriedly. "And thank you for letting me crash here for the night. We were going to just go to my place, but I feel a bit safer here."

"Oh, it's no big deal, dear," Molly insisted. Aquila took a bite of the roast in front of her, savoring the taste. Merlin, Molly was the best cook on the planet. She glanced at Dudley to see him engaged in a conversation with Angelina. She glanced towards Tonks, seeing the woman a bit uncomfortable.

"I was hoping to talk to you, actually," Aquila informed the woman. The Auror looked towards her, raising an eyebrow of question. "You see, I was wondering just what my brother is doing in Spain."

Tonks glanced around before giving Aquila her full attention. "I can't discuss that with you."

"Is he recruiting?" Aquila asked. "Is he... doing missions to find Death Eater hide outs? Like... I just want to know if he's safe, or if he's putting himself on the line."

"He's... safer than most," Tonks said after a moment. "I can't tell you much. He's keeping Muggles safe. Getting married-"

"I know. Rosa Javier," Aquila muttered. "Have you met her?"

"No, but I've heard of her," Tonks nodded after a moment. "Gorgeous girl - Italian and Spanish decent. From what I understand, they fell in love pretty fast - and they are excellent fighters. Her and your brother. She was president of the duelling club in Instituta Madrid. She also is in an Auror program with your brother - I guess that's how they got so close."

"Oh," Aquila murmured. "Her family is head of the Order there, right?"

"Mmmhmm," Tonks confirmed, taking a bite of potatoes. "She's also destined to take over once her parents retire due to old age. They're in their sixties, now. Her father was severely injured in the first war and he has difficulty walking. Her mother is a healer at St. Juliano's. Head of the Department of Incurable Diseases."

Wow. He certainly picked someone. "Well, I hope they have a lot of kids," Aquila admitted. "She doesn't have siblings?"

"Single child," Tonks nodded. "She has plenty of Uncles, but they don't want to take over. They think it's too dangerous. As far as I'm informed, Rosa's eager to take over. She's absolutely lethal on the field. Never met a better fighter, except for Mad-Eye, of course." Wow. Certainly an excellent pick, Evan.

They moved onto the topic of Quidditch next, and Aquila pondered a thought before asking, "Any bets you'd like me to place on your behalf?"

She thought carefully. "If you can get a bet placed for Adrian Davis to be on Liverpool Leeches, and Glynda Gladwell for Holyhead Harpies, that'd be great."

"I'll see what I can do," Aquila smirked. She would, of course. Tonks usually attended when she didn't have Auror duty. But now she had Auror and Order duty and couldn't. Oh, well, less people the merrier, as Aquila believed. Afterall, her entire house was the secluded and introverted house. Aquila was probably the most outgoing since... well Helena Ravenclaw. Once dinner ended, and Mrs. Weasley insisted she had the dishes, she moved to leave the dining room, not wanting to get stuck with Sirius. Merlin, and by the way he was looking at her, that's just what he intended.

"Aquila." Aquila stopped and Dudley looked at her as he moved towards the door. "If I may have a moment?"

"Go on," Aquila muttered to Dudley, slowly turning to face the Uncle that had broke Black tradition and been sorted into Gryffindor. She could hear Arthur Weasley, who had been itching for a chance to talk to Dudley all night ask him the exact purpose of a rubber duck.

"Bit of a joke, really," Dudley explained as he left the room. "You just put it in your bath when you're a kid. Gives the children something to play with, I suppose..."

The man looked identical to what she pictured her father would look like after twelve years in Azkaban. His eyes were gray and stared at her as if he was trying to find any evil within. Any darkness. She met his eyes blankly. Here it came.

"You look just like him," Sirius stated at last. Aquila raised an eyebrow in surprise, not expecting that. "Death Eater to the core, are you?"

"My mother is Euryale Rosier," Aquila said simply. She didn't rise to the bait. "My brother, Evan, is in Spain on Order business. He's engaged to Rosa Javier. I'm not a Death Eater."

He shrugged to himself and leaned back against the table, his arms crossed in front of him. An elderly looking elf was pulling things off of the table as he grumbled under his breath about Mudbloods and traitors. Obviously a creature she didn't want to cross. "No, but your father was."

"Regulus Black was my father," she said sharply. The elf paused and stared at her, its eyes widening. "My loyalty will always lie with him, just as all Black's loyalty is not with a master. My father was a great man that was involved in the wrong crowd." She forced herself to hold Sirius's gaze. "If I'm a Death Eater, I wouldn't be going to trials with a Muggle through my invitation, would I?"

"A cover-"

"Merlin, you're as thickheaded as my mother," she interrupted. Must have been a trait inbred people carried. Was she thickheaded? "My loyalty is first to my father, and second to the Order. I despise the Dark Lord with my entire being. He murdered my father and I want him to pay for that." Sirius didn't seem impressed with this and glanced towards the elf.

"Get to clearing the table, you filthy creature."

How dare he? He acted no better than Malfoy did to his own elves. This man was related to her? She saw nothing to be proud of. "Is there something you wanted, sir?" Aquila bit out as Sirius's gaze traveled back to her. He looked her over, as if trying to spot a Dark Mark. Honestly?

"What is your intention in the war?"

"I plan on joining the Ireland Quidditch team and avoiding a marriage contract," Aquila informed Sirius simply. "Though my mother has relented for now, there will no doubt be a contract in order for me again, and I'll have to start all over to convince her its a bad idea. And then I'll try out for Ireland next year, hopefully make it and do that on top of my studies. I won't have time for war. And if I did, I'd faithfully fight for the Order. I see no reason to not fight for the Order. I'm not a supremist. I believe Muggles and Muggleborns and Purebloods are all equal. There's no reason to fight about something you believe me to be. I'm not who you think I am."

Sirius pulled himself away from the table and towards her. His wand was drawn and it pressed against her neck. She raised her chin defiantly but didn't reach for her own wand. She didn't want to raise to the bait. She was smarter than that. "I do hope you'll watch your step. You may be a neice, but that doesn't mean I trust you. I never even knew you were alive."

"And here I was," she said softly, her lips curling into a smirk, "thinking I'd run away from home and appear at your doorstep. Here I was thinking that you were an innocent man that could be trusted without questions asked. That you were family, the good side of the family. How silly of me to want to go to you for help."

"Run away?" Sirius asked, eyebrow raised.

"You've met my brother," Aquila said quietly. "Evan. Evan Black. He stops by frequently for mission information. He says he's met you. I was going to run away and he said here was best. But I suppose he was wrong. He rarely is, that. Being a Hufflepuff and all."

"Hufflepuff," Sirius repeated as if it was a foreign word. He stepped back, a confused expression on his face. "And your house?"

"Ravenclaw." He was surprised, but pride refused to let him be embarrassed for his earlier assessment of her. "I think it best I make sure Dudley's okay. I don't want him to be caught in a conversation with Arthur Weasley too long. Mr. Weasley sometimes gets a bit carried away with his questions of the Muggle world." She turned and was about to leave when she glanced back. "If that's all you wanted, of course, sir?"

He cleared his throat, sheathing his wand. "When are you leaving tomorrow?"

"Dawn," she answered curtly. She wanted to ask why, but thought better to be suspicious. He'd no doubt be patrolling outside her door to make sure she didn't kill anyone in their sleep.

"And your Muggle... Potter's cousin you say?"

"He's not my Muggle," she said carefully. "And yes, he is. Rather nice man, if I do say so myself. Despite all the things Potter's no doubt been telling you, because I saw the look you gave him at dinner. He's not a bad person... Neither am I. I hope you'll realize that before you spend the entire night without any sleep."

She was about to reach the door when a throat cleared behind her. A tiny voice, rough with age, spoke. It was one she thought was vaguely familiar, but didn't identify as anyone she knew. "Kreature is here to serve Mistress," it spoke. Aquila glanced at the withering elf. Its eyes were wide and there was something in the way he looked at her. Sadness. "Kreature was Master Regulus's personal elf, Mistress. Kreature will serve the daughter of Master Regulus dutifully, Mistress."

Aquila tilted her head to the side. "Thank you, Kreature. I'm sure you'll be a fine elf. But I require nothing of import for the evening. Please, clean the table off and rest. I'm sure you're very tired for having kept this house in such pristeen condition."

The elf nodded immediately, its torn ears flapping in his exuberance. "Of course, Mistress. Kreature will do as Mistress requires. Mistress is not a blood traitor. Mistress is kind to Kreature. Kreature lives to serve Mistress, as he has served Mistress's Master Regulus. Kreature will overlook Mistress's selection in friends."

"And I am very thankful for that, Kreature. Thank you, again." She glanced at Sirius, sniffing in displeasure. "Good night, Uncle Sirius. I hope to see you at breakfast."

The black haired man began to say something, but she was already out the door, passing a muttering portrait of her grandmother on her way up the stairs. She reached the second landing and let out a puff of annoyed air before continuing on to her room. She needed to change to her pajamas. And she needed to get to bed for the early morning. She would see Dudley then. She doubted he'd want to be engaged in conversation in front of Potter's friends. She didn't want to, that was.


	12. Chapter 12

It was a rushed breakfast with lots of chattering and elbowing for pieces of toast or a spoonful of eggs. Aquila was informing Dudley that the itching powder the twins had put into his pants that morning would wear off in a few minutes and she apologized yet again for not warding his bag from the snickering red heads. "At least they got it out of their system," she told him simply, biting her lip as she reached for her orange juice. "Honestly, it would have been worse had they waited. It just means they like you enough to not do anything too horrible."

Her first sip of the orange juice and she knew something was wrong. Her tongue tingled and before she could voice her concern, her body shifted and she faced the boisterous laughter of the twins. "Frederick Gideon and George Fabian Weasley!" she cried. "How dare you-you-" She glanced down at herself. "Why have you turned me into Professor Snape?"

"Seemed to be defending him last night, mate," Fred winked, trying to appear innocent.

"You seem to be rather fetching when you look like that, mate," George commented. "Quite severe, right, Freddie?"

"You're right, Georgie. Something about her is... why, I don't say! Is that Professor Snape?"

Aquila growled, pointing her long bony finger at them both. Not her finger, Snape's. Eugh, the rotten twins. "I will make sure Lynch hears about this, boys. And I will make sure that the Irish team gets you back for it."

"Lynch wouldn't," Fred insisted, though he didn't seem to quite believe what he was saying. Aquila didn't comment, just raised an eyebrow and was pleased when the twins seemed to backpedal. She glanced down at herself in distaste. Honestly? She should have been more careful. She knew they'd try something - they always did.

"It'll wear off in ten minutes," George promised nervously. "Snape isn't going to be here until later tonight, so you won't run into him." Aquila just muttered under her breath, crossing her arms over her unusually flat chest. She glanced at those around her, who were struggling to stop laughing, and met Dudley's eyes - who looked positively pleased.

"Truth of the matter is, dear Ella bear," Fred stated solemnly. Oh, Merlin, they were going to say that they didn't have quite the same amount of bean to juice ratio necessary for ten minutes. Wonderful.

"We didn't put the bean in your drink," George finished.

"That was your dear Muggle friend."

Aquila rounded on Dudley, her eyes wide. But he gave her an innocent shrug. "I was coerced." Of that, she was very certain. She glared at the twins before glancing back to Dudley. "Er, they promised I would be spared from more itching powder."

She could help but laugh at that. "You must learn to not make deals with the devil. They'll break their word faster than you can blink."

By the time the effects of the bean wore off, to which Aquila threw Dudley a nasty smile that promised revenge, they all gathered just before dawn to portkey to the pitch. "Where is this exactly?" Dudley asked as he shouldered his bag full of his clothing for the next week. "You've never said."

"The Forest of Dean, where the World Cup took place last year," Aquila answered as she gripped her trunk tightly. "Now, you need to hold onto the portkey tightly and when we start to fall, you need to act like you're walking down. The more you start to freefall the - uh, more it hurts to land." He seemed concerned with this. "Just don't let go until we say and you'll be fine." She gave his arm a squeeze with her free hand and he gave a jerky nod as he commited her words to memory. She doubted he wouldn't remember.

They all stood in a circle and she presented the portkey - a small muddy boot. Much like the one they had taken to the World Cup just last summer. Merlin, it gave her memories. She forced them away - away the times things had been simple and she had been happy with Cedric - and waited for them all to grab firmly. "Hold on tight, ladies," Aquila smirked. "Gumdrops."

There was a distinct tugging sensation at her navel and they were gone in a burst of blue light. And suddenly they were spinning over open air. Dudley looked particularly green, and his knuckles were white as he kept a firm grip.

"Right, then," Angelina shouted over the wind. "I say we... let go!"

That was all it took and then they all separated. Aquila watched Dudley struggle a bit to stay upright as he tried to do as she said - walk his way down - but he teetered a few times as his brain insisted he had no balance. And then she was grabbing his arm with a pleasant smirk and they landed on the ground. "How was that for wizard transportation?" she questioned, fixing the badge that dictated he was a Ministry dictated Muggle.

"A bloody barf waiting to happen."

Aquila laughed heartily at that and linked arms with him, tugging him towards where the others landed. "But you held it in, so you're doing better than most." Dudley glanced around him, taking in the miles of tent lines that stretched on and the strange looking people in robes he had never seen before. Pointed hats, Quidditch team memoribilia, and people on brooms as they dodged others and flew towards an impressively tall stadium, were all something he had never seen in this magnitude before. Aquila gave him a moment before standing up on her tip-toes. It was difficult being short.

"There they are!" she heard the twins cry excitedly. So she followed them, Angelina trailing quickly, her trunk banging around behind her.

"It's the IRISH!" Fred and George bellowed in unison, attracting much attention from those around them. Aquila winced slightly, spotting the familiar emerald green tent. The Irish tent. Dudley seemed a little freaked out, though she didn't blame him, but relaxed slightly when the twins spoke. Obviously she wouldn't let him be led to a dangerous place. He must have heard stories from Potter about last year - explicitly.

"Don't stray far," Aquila warned the Muggle, feeling him nod immediately. "It's not that safe." He didn't tense, but his eyes darted around as though he could detect the danger. She knew he wouldn't. He couldn't feel the Dark magic. Her fingers tightened on his hand and he squeezed back in recognition.

"It's the Weasleys!" a chorus of voices cried back. Yes, that was the Irish. She spotted Aidan Lynch before he spotted her. His muscles rippled - as he was already shirtless, though she didn't know why - until she spotted the green paint he had coated himself in, a white number one from his actual jersey painted along his abdomen. The bright smile only grew wider as he heartily hugged the twins, then Angelina. The rest of the team was chatting with the group excitedly and they were already making bets. When Aidan did spot Aquila, he spread his arms wide, and she squeezed Dudley's hand yet again in reassurance - though she didn't know why she was reassuring him - and grinned as she let go and hugged Aidan.

"Merlin, Lynch!" Aquila cried, pulling back and gripping his shoulders so she could look at him. "I thought Seekers were sleek and stealthy, not _built_!" She couldn't remember having more muscle than he did in school - being a scrawney kid - but Merlin, he had definitely been working on strength.

The white, straight teeth glinted in the dawn sun. Even at dawn, the air was warm, but his smile chilled her... in a way she was hardly familiar with. "And look at you! Ella, since when were you more gorgeous than me?" She wondered if he knew he was flirting with her. She didn't know if she liked it, either. Glancing towards an awkward Dudley, she decided introductions were in order.

"Lynch, this is Dudley Dursley, a good friend of mine from back home. Dudley, this is Aidan Lynch, friend and Quidditch extraordinaire." Dudley extended his hand, but Lynch knocked it aside and went straight for a hug. She probably should have warned Dudley that the Irish seeker was a bit more touchy-feely that he was probably used to. Aquila introduced him to the rest of the team before Quigley clapped his hands together, rubbing them as if he was cold.

"Right, then, you little girls, tent's all set up!" he announced. His grin wasn't as nice looking as Lynch's, but that didn't stop Aquila from giving him a hearty hug.

"Look at you, you old man," she teased. He couldn't have been older than twenty-eight, but she could tell by the way he moved to hug her back that his beater arm was absolutely brutal. She almost wondered how he'd make it through the season. She would bet they'd go to their reserve about three matches into the next season. No way he could play long.

Quigley shot back that she'd be like him soon if she didn't take better care of herself, but she ignored that. She didn't want to think about that. She would only play a year if she even made it on the team. She took Dudley's arm and grinned up at him. Merlin, did he get taller since she last looked at him? "Prepare to me amazed," she insisted quietly. The others were already ducking inside. The tent was enormous on the inside. The emerald green didn't just coat the outside. The inside was green and gold as well. Sickening to look at if she looked too long. It made her think of Slytherin and Gryffindor having babies.

"Merlin, it's green," Angelina muttered.

"I tried to get rid of some of it," a new voice spoke up. Female. Aquila glanced towards it, recognizing Alicia Spinnet. Fred gave a yelp and dashed towards his girl, kissing her heartily, despite the crowd. Alicia scolded him by smacking the back of the twin's head. "Oi, give me some respect, Fred. Anyway, the green keeps coming back. I think it's cursed."

"Just a bit of Irish pride!" Aidan insisted.

"Pride?" Aquila muttered. "It's a nightmare. It wasn't this green last year."

Aquila rolled her eyes but followed the troupe further into the tent. "It's... it's huge!" Dudley whispered to her. He didn't seem to want to be overheard, so she figured he knew it was a dumb question to ask.

"Magic," Aquila winked. "Extension charms. It's why Wizarding London literally is in the entire space of a back garden in downtown London in the Muggle world. We can make the biggest space out of the tiniest one, to be quite honest." She hesitated as they came to the bedroom. Bunks - one room for the team, another for them. There would only be enough if each of them shared a bed. She glanced at Dudley. "You, uh, don't mind sharing, do you? I forgot to ask earlier. I had other things on my mind."

Dudley shrugged. "We've already slept in the same bed, haven't we?"

She nodded, berating herself for not thinking of that before, and set her trunk at the foot of the bed she declared theirs. Angelina pouted, as Alicia had already claimed the other bed that was on the ground.

"Well, I guess this means we're on top, babe," George winked.

Aquila laughed as Angelina smacked George hard. Merlin, they were going to be absolutely horrible. It was a good thing they were above Alicia's bed.

"Who's above us?"

Aquila sighed regretfully. "Since the Quidditch team has seven core members, and seven reserves, they only have twelve beds in their room. To the one couple on the team... Quigley and Tara, they will be above us." She sat on the bed as she glanced at the other four friends across from her, getting their things unpacked. The twins had the parchments, she could see, as they shuffled through some of them. "They're rather... loud. Quigley's arm doesn't stop him from being an animal. Normally the bed would go to Angelina's parents, but since Angelina's of age, they felt no need to come -just don't tell Mum. Two of the guys would man up and either one would sleep on the floor or they'd share a bed." She threw a grin towards Dudley. "It's usually Aidan and Turner - the reserve seeker. Don't tell Lynch I said that, though. He hates insinuations."

"Like you won't do that about eighty times in the week," Angelina threw at the Ravenclaw. Aquila rolled her eyes.

"So if there are reserves, why won't the reserve take Quigley's spot next year, instead of having try outs for his spot?"

Aquila guessed it would be a valid point to him. It would be to anyone. But she knew the team well enough to know better. "When Quigley leaves, Tara will no doubt leave with him. She likes being reserve. She has no desire to play full time. She's the mother of the group. McDonough, the other reserve beater, could try out for a full time part, but he would have to try-out first. Once you're placed on reserve, it really hard to get off of it, or to be moved up, unless it's mid-season and you prove your worth. Tara is Quigley's replacement. They're both right-handed, whereas McDonough and Connolly are both left-handed. Makes it equal, that. I'm right-handed." She held up her right hand and wiggled her fingers at him.

"That's a bit technical, isn't it? Is every team like that?"

"No," Aquila admitted. "It's what makes the Irish so amazing." Dudley contemplated that. "Anyway, that's not until next year so no worries." She stretched lightly before looking him over. A jersey and some muggle shorts. Certainly dressed for the occassion. "You ready for this? It's a tad overwhelming first time."

"Aren't all first times?" he quipped.

Aquila conceeded he had a point and laughed in sheer humor as she rose from the bed, offering a hand to help him up - though he didn't need it.

"Let's get us some Quidditch, ladies!" Aquila shouted into the tent.

Though most of the tent were men, save for Tara, Aquila, Angelina, and Alicia, the habit of calling the group ladies began when Aquila featured a less than savory outlook on the men after a few drinks and declared them all to be, for lack of a better phrase, women. They understood the connotation but that didn't stop them from teasing her relentlessly for down-stepping her own gender and she therefore began to call just everyone a woman. That way she could live without the necessary badgering constantly and let the moment pass.

Hoots and hollers met her declaration and Fred and George Weasley passed around parchments dictating the open spots and the players vying for those spots. Fancy bit of magic. Merlin's beard, there were a lot of open spaces this year.

"Cause of the Dark Lord's return," Alicia informed them thoughtfully. "Even if Potter's lying, which I'm not even going to chance, people are scared out of their wits. Withdrew from their own teams and fled to stay at home with their families." The Gryffindor in Aquila's year looked over her parchment, already seeming to decide a few choices for certain teams. "Lots of open spaces. If anyone was looking to try out, it'd be this year."

"Which is why everyone's trying out," Aquila murmured. A few names she recognized from her own years in school. A lot of them were horrid players that hadn't even made the school team.

"Right, then," she heard Fred and George explain to Dudley as they showed him how the parchment was. "Eight pages. One page a day, mate. And on the eighth day, it's usually Keepers. That's fairly easy. Day one, Seekers. That's the longest and most rigorous. Usually spills into Day Two. Day two, seekers, and Right-Hand beaters. Day three, Left-hand beaters. Day four Chaser one. Day five is Chaser two. Day six is chaser three. Day seven is keepers and whoever else didn't have a chance to go. Day eight is keepers or spill overs and results. Got it?" Dudley nodded. "Right, then state your name clearly for the parchment, mate."

"Dudley Dursley," Dudley said, though he was slightly confused and unsure of what that would do.

"Right, now it will only take selections from you from now on. Voice activated, specially for you, mate," one of the twins declared.

"Yeah, we had to modify since you don't got magic, didn't we?" the other nodded.

They both clapped him on the back. "Welcome to the bets, mate."

"Aquila filled you in, didn't she?" The twin wearing the stiffer collar had spoken and by the way he was standing besides Alicia, she guessed it to be Fred. George had a darker collar and was holding hands with Angelina. "On the bets?"

"Er, yeah. A prank or something."

"Right-O!" they cried in unison. "See you at the pitch!"

They were off, dragging their respective girlfriends with them, and Aquila sighed and shook her head before glancing at her parchment. She tapped her wand to it and murmured, "I so solemnly swear that I want to win the bet." It glowed a faint golden hue before returning to its original color. "Ready, then?"

"More than ever."

She grinned. "It's a bit of a walk, so good thing you brought walking shoes."

Eight stories of stairs later, Dudley was slightly winded, and the sun was just over the horizon. Already the crowd was mounting and she directed him through the insane stands, her rolled up parchment clutched tightly in her hand, and her wand in the other. She looped her arm through Dudley's, not having a free hand, and pulled him with her. The last thing Aquila wanted was to lose him in a crowd he had no idea how to navigate through. "Always the same seats every year," she informed him.

"This is absolutely spectacular. A little overwhelming, but it's... this is what you see every day?" Dudley questioned.

"Yeah," Aquila admitted. She was intrigued though. "It's every day for me so it's not as ... as amazing, I suppose. I wish it was as exhilerating as the first time I was here. What do you see? Tell me." It was a request he could flat-out refuse to do if he so wished, but he seemed to find no harm in it.

"There's a man with strange tattoos on his face. His hair is changing colors and his eyes are... almost like a snake's."

"Metamorphagus," Aquila told him. "Like Tonks." But she spotted who he had been describing.

"There's so much going on, I can't even take it all in." Despite this, he continued his descriptions as best as he could. Aquila saw the people she had previously looked over in a new light, seeing them with the feelings of Dudley's excitement pouring off of him. Finally they reached their seats, high up and surrounded by schoolmates that weren't in their traveling party. She spotted Cho Chang a bit further up and decided not to let her eyes linger. Merlin, what was she doing here? Her eyes were red and puffy like she had been crying and she looked like hell. She tugged Dudley down beside her and noticed that Angelina and George took Dudley's other side while Fred and Alicia sat beside Aquila herself. In the empty row in front of Aquila, it quickly filled up with the Irish team and Aquila leaned forward to talk to Lynch over the loud chattering around them.

"So, anyone trying to take your spot?"

"Nope. We've just got Chaser positions open." He winked back at her, turning around. "You are trying out next year, right?"

"Would I ever give up a chance like that?" she returned with a smirk. She spotted the Owner's Box - where the owners of each team sat and would watch certain times of the trials. Leaning over Fred, she grabbed Alicia's binoculars and glanced over the crowd of owners. An impressive turn out this year. She even spotted Lucius Malfoy and Augusta Longbottom amongst them. "Ah, there's good old Amos." She passed the binoculars back to the peeved Gryffindor. "He's the manager/owner of Ireland," she explained to Dudley. Glancing back at Aidan, she bit her lip. "I'm curious. Any idea who else is trying out for the spot?"

"You've got about... three hundred competitors," Aidan admitted. "No special treatment, you know. Even if Amos adores you."

"Amos?" Dudley asked. "Isn't that the same name as that-" He stopped suddenly as he made the connection. "Oh. I, uh, mean-"

Aquila shrugged. "Amos Diggory is the owner of the Ireland team, yes. Yes, he's Cedric's father." She glanced towards the owner box. "I'm surprised he's here, to be honest."

"He insisted," Lynch shrugged. "He wanted to see the competition. I think with his boy gone - and, uh, sorry for your loss, Black - he's throwing himself into the team. He's been to every practice since the funeral."

"Unheard of since he only attended Sunday practice," Aquila explained to Dudley, who looked confused. She shrugged lightly. "He's upset. It's his way of dealing, no doubt." Aidan agreed to that and turned back around. Dudley, however, seemed a bit uncomfortable. She didn't know what to say. She didn't know if she should say anything at all. So she chose not to. She glanced down at the parchment in her hands.

Loud bells went off, causing Dudley to jump slightly in surprise, but loud cheers soon followed and people from the ground took to the air. "See how high they are?" Aquila said to Dudley, nodding towards the pitch. He noticed. "It's a long fall down in the middle of a match. Hurts like bleeding Hades, too." Dudley's eyes widened.

"How did you survive that fall?"

"Wasn't fun. I've done it numerous times. Mostly again Slytherin. Malfoy sets his team on us. They're brutal."

And then a voice was speaking. The coordinator for the trials this year - the winner of the last regional cup. Last year just happened to be the World Cup. Amos Diggory was speaking, clearing his throat so everyone was silent.

"Welcome, all - Wizards, Witches, and other folk alike, to the nine hundred and seventy second Quidditch team trials for Great Britain and Ireland!" Cheers drowned out Amos's Irish brogue and Aquila couldn't help but hoot along. "We will begin with the national team trials for seekers. Following the national teams will be city teams from England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and then Ireland. The Quidditch players will each be announced by name, age, and special ability. Upon request, N.E.W.T. scores will be available to the teams that wish to see them." There was a pause. "Let Day One of the trials begin!"

The roars were deafening and people stood in order to shout out in absolutely excitement. Aquila wasn't one of them, but she did hoot and holler from her seat. Dudley seemed affected by the excitement as well and seemed to be having a good time as well.

"Dominic O'Leery, eighteen. Death Spirals."

The names were announced continuously by a monotone announcer sitting in the Owner's Box, though it wasn't Amos's Irish hilt, followed by a brief demonstration of their speed, skills, and their ability to catch a snitch in under five minutes. It was a modified snitch specifically for trials, so that it wouldn't take forever to catch, but it was still tricky. By the end of the day, only two thirds of the intended people had tried out. They had taken turns getting food for the gang, Aquila promising to retrieve the midnight snack when a majority was hungry.

"Midnight snack?" Dudley asked, confused.

"Oh, we sort of just pass out here," Aquila admitted. "If you're tired enough, you walk to the tent. But eight flights is a long walk to sleep." She glanced around them and Dudley looked to the people sitting behind him for the first time. Nearly half had disappeared and the rest were laying on each other as they slept. "But that's usually just first night. Like I said, Seekers the longest trials. The rest we leave by sun down usually, or just a bit after. All trials stop at three in the morning for rest before they resume at nine. Some people are trying out for multiple positions, see - idiots, those." Aquila glanced at him. "Why? Do you want to go to the tent?"

"No," Dudley admitted. "Not tired, really."

She snorted. "You will be, trust me. It's only dusk. You have five more hours until midnight." As Philip North, 23, Wronski Feignt, finished his run, she ticked the box putting him on the English team. Wronksi feignt was Ireland's greatest weakness. England would be stupid not to take him when he could execute it perfectly.

The trials continued smoothly until ten, where trouble hit. It wasn't the life threatening trouble, but it was Quidditch disaster.

Someone didn't show. It had never happened for as long as Aquila had attended. It had probably happened before, years ago, but this wasn't something she had personally seen before.

"Why's every one freaking out?" Dudley asked, confused. "So a bloke missed-"

"It doesn't happen. You're trying out? You make sure you get there." It was Angelina who had spoken and she seemed nervous. There was a slight pause after the announcer had said "Ethan Bones, 29, speed." No flier went out into the middle of the stands. Aquila felt dread pool in her stomach as she stood to try to get a better look at the ground of the pitch. Her eyes darted around, seeing nothing, before looking towards the Owner's Box. Someone was shuffling towards the announcer and said something to her. Aquila couldn't hear, of course, but she knew it was bad when the person - who she couldn't see - had bowed their head in defeat.

Oh, Merlin.

"Ethan Bones is no longer trying out," the announcer said. Her voice had some emotion this time, a sympathy. "He has passed away in the late hours of last night."

"What?" Aidan breathed in absolute shock. He wasn't the only one. Aquila sat down heavily, her brow furrowed. He was 29... He couldn't have just keeled over from natural causes. And she knew enough about him to know he wasn't sucidal.

"That's Susan's elder brother," Alicia said after a moment. "She's been living with him since her parents were killed in the first war."

Aquila bit her lip. What about Susan? She didn't want to ask. Being a Ravenclaw, she had learned when to ask questions. And what questions you shouldn't ask because you wouldn't like the answer. She wisely kept silent and glanced at the parchment where Ethan Bones's name was turning a gray - it must have meant he would be trying out, or wouldn't get a single team. She scanned what he had tried out for. Puddlemere, Liverpool, Portsmouth. All great teams, all for a great player.

"Reckon it was Death Eaters?" George asked as they moved onto the next flier. It was the only thing to make sense. She didn't know of anyone that wanted to hurt the Bones family besides them. They were Ministry officials, sure, but the good kind. Sweet - Hufflepuffs to the core for generations - and loyal. Order Members. Merlin, it was starting again.

"We'll find out when we get back," Angelina informed George quietly. "No need to speculate just yet."

There was agreement but the rest of the seekers weren't the best ones. Not that they were horrible, just not team material. Movements too practiced and skills lacking for competitive matches. It wasn't Hogwarts Quidditch anymore.

Her eyes darted to the fliers almost carelessly. Perhaps it was the late hours that made them look slower than normal. She didn't know. But she didn't look away. Not even when her head drooped and landed on Dudley's shoulder. He tensed slightly in surprise, glancing at her.

"I don't want to leave just yet," Aquila told him quietly. "I've never left the first day."

"Have you fallen asleep on it?" Dudley questioned.

"There's something about sleeping with the sounds of the cheers, the brooms whizzing past, the smells of sweat, leather, wood, and ... mud." She smiled against his shoulder, her eyes trained to the sky as the wanna-be seeker spiraled around for the snitch. "It's dizzying, but it's comfortable... It's exhilerating but it's relaxing." She checked the none box for his name with a flick of her wand. They might even finish early, since a few more players didn't show up - though their reasons for withdrawal were the same as most people quitting - the Dark Lord's supposed return. Their fear was real, and since Ethan Bones's death, she doubted they would overlook it as an accident. "Do you have anything like that to you?"

"Rugby, I'd say. It's a lot like this... football too." Dudley paused though. "But falling asleep during something I'm obsessed with?" His lips twitched. "Hearing about a world that's not my own is a lot like that. I don't want to fall asleep, because it's fascinating to hear about. I try to stay awake."

She elbowed him. "Now you're just sucking up to me. Trying to sleep with me, Dursley?"

He snorted. "No, I'm being honest." Right. She glanced at the parchment. Merlin, eighty more people tonight. Midnight, they voted to wait for snack, due to those that didn't show bumping up the standings, and instead left at one fifteen exactly. The announcer, rather tired sounded, stated that trials would resume tomorrow. She got to her feet sluggishly, stretching and nearly knocking her hand into George's sleeping head. Angelina yawned as she shook him awake. Fred and Alicia had already disappeared. The crowd was thin, but it still took them a good twenty minutes to exit the stands and head towards their tent.

Things were never that easy. She could see the welcoming green tent, standing out against the tan counterparts, when she was intercepted. She stiffened immediately, her feet halting their steps.

"Aquila, can I talk to you?" the young woman asked. She seemed nervous, as she very well should have been.

"I'm not interested in talking to you, Chang," Aquila stated stiffly. Her tone was sharp, her words cold. The girl wasn't deterred.

"I just want to say I'm sorry... I'm really sorry, Aquila... I-I never meant to hurt you. One thing just led to another and... and he loved you. He loved you so much. I had no right to get between that. I don't even know how it happened... It just did and I'm so sorry-"

"No, you're not," Aquila said simply. Her grip tightened on Dudley's wrist and she made to go around the Korean. "You're only sorry that our friendship is over because you cheated with my boyfriend. You fucked him like a whore and talked about it to my face, as though I should have known. Don't you dare tell me how he felt about me, Chang, because if he felt anything at all, you would have stopped it. But you didn't-"

"It was a mistake!" Cho Chang pleaded. Her raven hair fell into her face as she tried to grab Aquila's arm. Aquila jerked out of the way as if the woman's touch would burn her. "It was a mistake. Please, Aquila, I'm so sorry- I never meant anything to happen. I never wanted to hurt you-"

"You did," Aquila snapped. "Leave me alone, Chang. I don't want to talk to you. The only time we'll ever be friends is on the Pitch. Other than that, we don't speak a word to each other. Do you understand?"

Cho Chang's dark eyes filled up with even more tears. "Aquila, please-"

"He didn't love you and he didn't love me," Aquila told her fiercely. "The sooner you understand that the better. If he did love you, he would have left me. If he loved me, he would have never have started with you. Love doesn't exist, Chang. Get over it. I am."

"You don't look over it," Chang returned bitterly. "I was watching you when Amos spoke. He sounds just like him-"

"I'm over it," Aquila said sharply, stepping past her. "You had best get over it too."

Aquila managed to walk towards the tent, her breath leaving her in angry pants, before Cho decided she needed the last word. "He loved me more than you! He approached me, told me you never had to find out. I refused. You're my best friend, Aquila. You still are. And he told me how you two were over. That you and him were a fuck and done." Aquila tried not to let her temper get ahold of her. Her infamous veela temper that was excellent on the pitch but disasterous on the ground. "He said you begged him to stay when you found out about us. That you begged him because he had a few empty promises of a proposal in the future - and you fell for it like a fool-"

Aquila hadn't even realized she had drawn her wand until it was too late. She advanced on Chang and pressed her wand to the woman's throat. "Don't you dare talk about it like you know everything. He _lied_ to you. He lied to us both. Understand that, sweetheart." Aquila's eyes flashed dangerously as the woman obviously realized she had gone too far. She stepped away, but Aquila followed. There wasn't a crowd - fights happened all the time here and people over looked them - but Aquila still knew her mother would hear about this if it turned into something ugly. "I didn't beg him at all. I wanted to dump him. I wanted to move on with my life and find someone else after I found out - break all ties with the two traitors in my life - but he begged me to stay with him until the end of the year. He wanted me to stay so that when he grew tired of a stupid cow like you, he'd still have me. He wanted me and I told him no. He begged for days and days - flowers, candy, cards - and I refused and refused until he proposed. A ring and everything. And I said yes, because I knew - I thought that would mean you would go away. But it didn't. It never does." Cho swallowed, obviously not having heard this version before. "We will never be best friends again, never be friends. I dream of cursing you until you can't even recognize your own-"

"That's enough." Lynch's voice was enough to bring Aquila out of her stupor and she felt his hand grab her own. Aquila jerked out of it as she backed up a step.

"Don't talk to me again, Chang. Never. Don't sit by me, don't look at me, don't even breathe by me." Aquila wand flicked up and down the Korean's body. "Dressed like that, you're getting over him pretty soon, huh? Who is it this time?" Cho glanced away. "Another champion? Krum? Delacour?" Cho shook her head in obvious distress. "Potter?" Her head shot up sharply to that and Aquila couldn't help but snort. "Potter's an idiot and you're a fool. Diggory never loved us, he just wanted to use us. Potter's probably sleeping with Granger as we speak, maybe even the Weaslette. I, on the other hand, pray that you'll realize that you need to grow up. We're in a war, Chang. And I'm not going to let petty relationships like Diggory's put me off of the task that I want to survive it." Aquila swallowed and tucked her wand back into her pocket.

She spun with more grace than she thought she should have for being up nearly twenty-four hours and lowered her eyes as Dudley tried to meet them. "Okay?" he asked as he fell into step beside her.

"Been better," she admitted. "I-" She just shook her head and moved towards the tent, thrusting open the doors to see most of them already in their beds for tomorrow morning. Then the real partying began. Lynch entered behind her and began to ward the tent doors. Aquila just kept walking until they reached the second bedroom, opening her trunk to fish out her pajamas.

"You sure you don't want to talk?" Dudley asked.

Aquila nodded and glanced towards the other beds. Curtains were drawn around them and the hum of silencing charms were emitting from each of them. "I just want to forget him. Forget her. Forget the whole thing. I'm ready to move on and I'm trying to. I can see the bridge I need to cross. I just need to step on it." She didn't care that she was pulling her jersey off in front of Dudley. He politely diverted his eyes and shifted uncomfortably. Aquila threw a t-shirt on and kept her shorts from the day. She just wanted to lay down. She shut her trunk quietly and glanced at Dudley. "There's a bathroom across the hall, can't miss it. Uh, and kitchen's at the back by the table." Aquila sat down at the foot of the bed and looked at him as he reached for his bag to pull out clothes. "Did you enjoy today?"

He nodded. "Yeah, I didn't know where to look first. Bloody hell, now I see why you talk about it."

Aquila blushed lightly. "I want you to tell me if you've had enough or whatever. If you want to go home, I can take you back at any time."

"Understood." He bit his lip and reached for the hemline of his jersey. Aquila glanced towards her lap to give him privacy.

"About what happened out there," Aquila started carefully. "I have an awful temper. And she knows how to push it. I-I lose my temper a lot. I try not to in front of you. It scares a lot of people away." She cleared her throat and clenched her hands together.

"She hurt you. You have every right to get angry. Especially to her."

Aquila shrugged lightly. "I shouldn't have. I screamed myself hoarse at her in school already. She knows not to talk to me. I lose control, but that's no excuse. You shouldn't have seen that and I'm sorry."

He shrugged and moved towards her, obviously done with changing. Aquila looked up and met his eyes. Did he get even taller? No, she was just sitting down. "Do we eat junk food every day?"

Aquila laughed at the abrupt subject change. "It's a tent full of guys and about four girls that might as well eat like guys. Of course we're eating junk food. It's practically a right of passage." She scooted back so that her body was against the wall of the tent beside her. It was taut and solid - magic - so that she wouldn't fall over the side. Dudley sat on the other end, but didn't lay down yet.

"Then I think I can forgive you, as long as you promise the food doesn't suddenly turn healthy."

"Well..." Aquila winced. "Last day, it's the day before the tournament... You, uh, actually get to taste Tara's cooking. Amazing, if, well, if you like Irish food. Lots of potatoes. It's a real meal, though, not too healthy, but healthier." She gave Dudley a small smile as he seemed to relax at the notion of not having to eat rabbit food. "We're Quidditch players. We eat like it." She patted for him to lay down beside her and he did so. A small flick of her wand caused the curtains around their bed to close and a silence charm was in place securely. "There will be fireworks tomorrow," she told him after a moment. "They aren't like yours, of that I'm sure."

"That sounds pretty awesome."

Another wave of her wand caused the covers to stop at their waists. She pressed her head to her side of the pillow. "Let's agree not to steal each other's covers."

"Deal." They shared a quiet laugh and she heard his breathing slow quietly, but he was still staring above them. "You're..." He stopped, shaking his head as though he didn't want to go there. "You realize how embarrassing it was to convince my parents to come here?"

She raised an eyebrow, confused and slightly hurt. "Embarrassing?" He glanced at her sharply, hearing her tone of disappointment. "If you thought it was-"

"No, not like that," Dudley insisted before he chuckled. "Dad gave me the talk about three times to make sure I remembered." She snorted, unable to stop it. "I had to inform him I knew what to do about eight different times and he offered a cup of brandy for it. And then my mum tried. I flat out shut the door in her face." Aquila laughed at that. Her fingers darted to the shirt he was wearing of Muggle something or other. She was slightly relieved he wasn't embarrassed because of her. She didn't want that. "When I told them that there'd be your friends here, they made me promise not to piss anyone off-"

"We don't hurt Muggles..." Aquila frowned slightly. She could feel his dog tags beneath his shirt and traced the chain once before letting her hand rest against his chest. "We don't hurt anyone. Only if we're in a duel. I don't know why they'd be under the impression-"

"Uh, I may have been given a pigs tail by some big burly bloke when I was twelve. Picked up Harry from this shack because my dad was absolutely bonkers-"

"You had a pig tail because someone used magic on you?" she gasped. She sat up, leaning over him slightly as her hair fell around her faec. It was long enough to touch his chest just slightly. "No wonder your dad didn't like me - and Petunia warned me not to talk about magic too much. Merlin's beard, I'm so sorry. I apologize on behalf of wizarding kind." Who would do that to him? Big burly bloke... Hagrid? No, he was harmless. She shook her head, falling down beside him on the bed. "Merlin, I'm surprised you even wanted to come with to here."

"Well, some wizards in London removed it from me," Dudley shrugged. "No scar or anything." He paused for a moment as Aquila tried to figure out what to say. "But I know there are people out there that want to hurt people - wizard or not."

"That's why I want you to stay close to us," she told him quietly. "It is dangerous. You never know who will turn dark and it's safer to be safe than to take risks." Her fingers trailed along his shirt again, though she didn't notice she was doing it. "A lot of them were the bad guys in the first war - friends of my father, friends of my mother... It's dangerous to be about at night, to be about during the day. Ethan Bones was a great bloke. I didn't know him personally, but he was doing Ministry work for his aunt. No nonsense kind of guy. It's starting again. People are disappearing. Not that important people, but people that die suspiciously. When I was little, I remember listening to the radio when my mum wasn't around... before my father died. Deaths all the time. And when my father died, they just got worse. Burning villages - muggle ones too. Raiding shops and tortures put on public display. It was chaos. So many fled, so many died, so many stayed."

Her fingers stopped and she blushed as she realized where they were. Touching the dog tags again. She curled her hand into a fist and pulled it away from him. "Sorry..." She cleared her throat and continued. "There are people that want to hurt you - me - Muggles, Blood traitors, Half-bloods that don't support their cause... They are here, too. In this very campsite. Not the team, though, nor the Weasleys. They're very loyal to the Order's cause. You wouldn't be here if they weren't." Her hand rested in front of her as he turned to look at her better. It was dark in the enclosed space, so she flicked her wand. "Lumos." It lit up to a brilliant blue color, but Dudley didn't flinch at the sudden assault. He stared intently at her. "What?" Her hand flew to her face. "Did the twins do something?"

He shook his head. "You're beautiful."

She looked away from him. "It's the Veela in me."

"It's not just appearance, you know," Dudley said quietly. "It's your personality, too. So what if you've got a temper? I do too. I also like how athletic you are, even though when we hang out we mostly just sit around and do nothing." Aquila giggled, moving to protest, but he silenced her when he continued. "You're pretty down to earth and despite all the shit that's gone on in your life, you're ... well, you're you. I like that."

"So you like me, huh?" Aquila questioned. They hadn't breached the topic since Evan had been visiting Little Whinging. "That's what you said when you found my brother and I in bed- Merlin, that sounds worse than it was."

He nodded, his eyes meeting hers. "Yeah. I'd be a fool if I didn't."

"Good, I do, too." Aquila then grinned cheekily. "I also like you, too." He snorted at her attempt of humor. "What does this mean?"

"Well... You said that you need to cross the bridge first, so how about once you do that - at your own pace - we can go out to lunch and we can visit a Muggle school. You said you wanted to see that, right?" Merlin, why was he so good to her?

"Right... I think at this rate I'll be spoiled rotten."

He snorted and glanced back above him, shifting slightly to get comfortable. "That is the intention, isn't it?"

"Is it?" she asked him coyly. Her dark hair fell into her face as she pressed her face to his shoulder. "I was rather under the impression that you would just indulge me until you decided magic wasn't for you."

"Were you?" He hummed. "That simply can't do."

Her lips curled into a faint smile at their banter. "It can't? Why not?"

"Because while magic is definitely not for me, as I am not magical in the slightest -" Aquila furrowed her brow, confused. "That doesn't mean the idea of going out with you is in any way unattractive. In fact, it's the exact opposite. Quite appealing." Aquila snorted, waiting for him to get to his point. She moved a few strands of hair from her eyes. "So you tell me when you're interested in a relationship - if you're interested at all, that is - and I'll happily oblige."

She shifted slightly so her lips could lightly touch Dudley's jaw - as she wasn't laying in the right position to kiss his cheek. "I don't think you'll be waiting long. I just need to deal with Chang and my ridiculous nightmares."

"Nightmares?"

She winced slightly. "I... I dream about things - death, to be quite frank. It started with my father's death when I was a child - I had seen his body on the doorstep when my mother had answered the door... And then Cedric." The name almost seemed taint spoken between them in this moment. "So I'll try my best not to wake you... I, uh, apologize if I do. They usually don't return after I've woken up once in the night." She pressed her cheek against the bone in his shoulder. Her eyes felt tired and she let them close as she listened to his pulse in his arm. It was just quiet enough to hear. "I probably should have told you all of this before I forced you to sleep in the same bed with me."

"The night of the party... did you have nightmares then? I didn't think you did, but I was pretty much out-"

"No," Aquila admitted. "Alcohol is a... a natural suppressor on magical dreams - because most dreams in Muggles are never memories, but manifestations of wants. In magical beings, they can be memories, future events, or even past lives. A bunch of superstitious crock to the last two, but memories are very frequent..." She paused as his breathing shifted slightly, almost calming. Her free hand, that wasn't holding her wand under her pillow, moved to his arm and gripped it lightly, as though it was a pillow. "What do you dream about?"

"I don't have dreams," he admitted. "I fall asleep and the next thing I know I'm awake."

"That's a sign that you're healthy, you know," she told him, her Ravenclaw nature peaking out. "And that you're well rested."

"Yeah, so I don't particularly aim for dreams."

"I weep for you," she said teasingly. She shifted slightly until she was comfortable, though she didn't move much from her original position. "Have you ever had a dream?"

"Well, of course. We all have dreams."

"What was your last dream, then?" she inquired.

There was silence a moment as he obviously thought. And then he seemed to think of one - or he made it up entirely. "I believe I was ten. I dreamed of driving this truck, right-"

"Truck?"

"Er, a larger version of the car Amber has."

"Oh, okay," Aquila murmured, letting him cnotinue.

"And it was like a delivery truck and I was delivering something. But by the time I got to the place, they wouldn't take my order because I was two minutes later. Turns out I was delivering teletubbies... Uh, they're these really creepy dolls that used to be a television programme when I was younger. Gave me nightmares all the time, but mum insisted I watch them."

Aquila didn't understand the references at all but yawned against his arm. "That's not a bad dream at all... It's funny, though. Your dreams are so different." She flicked her wand slightly. "Nox." The faint blue light disappeared and despite her closed eyes, she was shrouded in even darker darkness. "Tell me if you dream tonight, okay? Goodnight, Dudley."

"Night, Ella."

She smiled at the nickname and, breathing in the scent of his cologne, the same as always, and drifted off to sleep. She thought of Dudley as she did so. How he never... he never pushed, never demanded, never questioned much of her. He sort of took it all in stride. Did she push him? Did she force him into situations he didn't like? Merlin, and the pig thing... what if he secretly harbored a vendetta against her and her kind? Merlin knew that Vernon probably still did, despite his kind words to her. Wonderful, now she'd have to figure out what's real and what's her being too pushy. Is that why relationships and her sucked?


	13. Chapter 13

The scent of fruit assaulted her senses as she slowly woke. There was a hand on her ass. That was the next thought she had and the absolute only thought she could focus on. Whoever it was was either going to lose their hand or their eyes. She couldn't decide which would be worse.

"Hand off my arse," she said firmly. Her voice was still tired, but there was an edge to it that put even the first years in line. The hand didn't move and another was tight around her waist. Was she... Dudley. Shit.

She opened her eyes and saw that he was still fast asleep, her face pressed against his chest. Merlin's beard, why did they always somehow get into this position? She groaned softly and pressed her fingers against his chest to pull away. Once her hand was free she reached down and grabbed his own on her ass. Absolutely no way. She flung it off of her and Dudley's eyes opened immediately, starting up.

"Sorry," he muttered, flushing brightly. "I-uh, really didn't mean to-"

"Hands off the arse is all I'm asking for," Aquila said simply. She yawned and rolled onto her back slightly, stretching the joints she could without moving him much. Not sure what to say, she reached for her wand as she sat up, flicking it so the curtains sprung away and the silencing charm vanished. "Morning, though." She climbed over him as she left the bed, calling, "Morning, ladies! Up and at 'em!"

"You two are the only ones still asleep!" Angelina called back. Oh. Aquila fumbled with her wand to cast cleansing charms on them both and ran a hand through her hair - washed thanks to the spell. It was slightly mussed. Grabbing a jersey from her bag, she pulled her t-shirt off and walked into the common area as she fumbled with the jersey - dressed in a bra. They were used to it. She did this often and she had swam in front of all of them before. It was hardly any different.

She was fit, in every sense of the word. Her stomach was flat, her arms evenly strong (as she had to be even, she couldn't just let her right one get all the work), and her skin was... well tan. She spent a lot of time outside in a sports bra during Quidditch season at school. But she'd need to start getting back in shape for next season. She had to stay in top condition for try outs next year. Seeing a few of the Irish team's interest in her, she shot them a glare and pulled on her light green jersey, snatching a pear off the dining room table, if that's what it could be called. It was more of a chopping board.

"Time?" Aquila asked.

"Nearly eight." Far too early for their late night. She spotted Dudley leave the bedroom as she seated herself on the edge of the table.

"I reckon Beater Left day means that we get to party like Irish?"

"Black, every day means we party like the Irish," Lynch informed her as though she wasn't Aquila Black anymore. Aquila gave him an easy smile and took a bite of the pear, glancing towards Dudley as he reached for an apple. Lynch looked her over as Aquila chewed her pair slowly. "What's up with you?"

"Nothing, why?" Aquila asked, confused.

She glanced down at herself to make sure that what she was wearing was put on right. She would change her shorts before they went to the pitch, of course, but she doubted that was the reason they were looking at her oddly.

"You're usually the first one up, lass," Mullet, the chaser that was retiring this year, stated slowly. "And you usually wake everyone else up because you're excited."

"Oh," Aquila said quietly, shrugging. "Slept good, that's all. Sorry if you were disappointed I didn't polish the fruit for you or anything."

"Nah," Tara insisted. "They're just put out that a lovely face didnt greet them this morning."

Aquila snorted. "Right. Anyway, are we going to head to the pitch because I feel like some alcohol, Irish chants, and some good old bludger dodging."

"Some what?" Dudley asked, slightly afraid that he would end up breaking an arm. Well... there was always a possibility.

"Oh, you'll just have to duck whenever it's called," Aquila insisted. She tied her hair up into a braid and yawned before biting into the pear once more. Her eyes sought out Dudley's and he seemed a tad nervous for his life. The twins stood at the same time and disappeared into the bedroom before returning, three bats in hand. Aquila recognized one as her own. She rolled her eyes and reached for another pear, but reached behind her suddenly. Her bat fell neatly in her hands and the twins groaned.

"I was so sure that time, weren't you, Freddie?" George groaned.

"Indeed, Georgie."

"You boys need to learn that I'm started to expect you throwing things at me behind my back. And I know you well enough to know where you'll throw them."

Dudley looked surprised at her reflexes however and she winked at him. "Years upon years of practice. When you're a beater, you expect things coming up behind you. Dangerous business, that."

"Aye, I broke me spine once my second year of school," Connolly stated and Aquila rolled her eyes. He told this story once a year on Beater Left day. A tradition, it seemed. "First ever match, too. Nasty stuff. Hurt like hell. Pomfrey fixed me up right quick and I was on the pitch by the time the match ended."

"Bloody hell," Alicia sighed. "You could at least not scare the bloke before he goes to the pitch."

"It's a lot safer than they're making it sound," Aquila said with an apologetic grin. She tied off the braid and rolled her shoulders. "Merlin, today's going to be great. Finally, my sort of game."

"Isn't this all your game?"

Aquila grinned brightly at Dudley. "Exactly." She twirled her bat around in her hands before she gripped it firmly in her right. "Today and tomorrow are just more my days. Oi, Lynch, put your new muscles to good use and carry the firewhiskey." There was a bark of indignation, but she bit her pear, smirking as she chewed quietly. "Well? I know you're a lazy lot, but you could at least get moving. We've got to fight the crowd still." Aquila returned to the bedroom long enough to retrieve a different pair of shorts and her wand, slipping it into her pocket and slipping on her shoes. She was ready.

The men were each carrying a few bottles of firewhiskey and the women the rolls of parchment for the bets. Aquila claimed it sexist, but the four women were tasked as security. As in they had to pave the path through the crowd so that no one would knock a precious bottle of firewhiskey down the stands where no one would bother to retrieve it. Too much of a walk for a bottle. The twins, she suspiciously noted, were wearing their backpacks, them bulging. More firewhiskey? Aquila spotted Dudley just behind her as they reached the eighth level and she fell into step beside him as the crowd waned.

"Don't worry, I'll keep you protected," she winked.

He didn't seem relieved at the notion. She plopped down in her seat from yesterday and Dudley resumed his own seat. She took the bottle from him and the day began. Around noon, most of those around her had passed out in their drunken states, she was left on Beater duty. Which meant if a bludger went her way, she hit it towards the beater in the field. But she hadn't hit it yet and she was getting antsy, her eyes darting around the pitch as it followed the bludger. It bounced off a bat a stand over, four rows, down and the one trying out was able to knock it towards the goals - but the path diverted and it went towards another stand. Dudley was wide eyed in fascination as he watched the mock sport being played about.

She couldn't wait for him to see the real thing.

"Heads up!" Aquila called suddenly, making Dudley jump in surprise. There hadn't been any talking going on between them since the others began to fall asleep. George groaned beside Aquila in his drunken state. Aquila stood and climbed her seat before she held back her arm and swung with all her might. The bludger sailed back and a grin plastered itself on Aquila's face. Merlin, when would the next one come?

"Bloody hell, that could kill someone."

"Oh, they have," Aquila said lightly as she seated herself back down. She loosened her grip on her bat and grabbed the bottle of firewhiskey. "Shh, don't tell mum I'm drinking. She thinks I promised not to that much." She glanced at her almost empty bottle. "Oops." She giggled and leaned into Dudley's side. "Merlin, he's good, isn't he?"

"What?" Dudley asked, distracted. Aquila gestured towards the field with her bat and to the beater that had hit three in a row, the two bludgers going at him one after another so he had no break. He only missed one and dodged it in an attempt to actually stay in the air. "Oh, yeah, better than Morag."

She grinned at that response and glanced at the parchment resting atop a sleeping Lynch. She tapped her wand to it to make her selection and relaxed back into Dudley's side. "Ready for tonight?"

"Is it going to be crazy?"

"You think Muggle parties are great?" Aquila smirked. "Wait until you see ours."

He groaned. "Then I should start to lay off the alcohol now."

She snorted in amusement and watched as he actually did set the bottle down. "Do you not like drinking? I've noticed you don't drink much."

"I do, just not in front of people I don't really know." She supposed everyone had their own insecurities.

"Well we're a pretty understanding lot, so no pressure or anything." She sipped from her own bottle as he was quiet. "We don't force people to do things they aren't comfortable with, you know. I don't think we're that intimidating, but I guess I could be wrong."

"No, I would have stopped if I wasn't comfortable," Dudley shrugged. He leaned back in the stadium seating, the backs of the chairs attached to the bleachers making it comfortable. A simple charm removed them for laying down, but it was comforting to lean back during the day. When it wasn't unbearably hot. Her legs stretched out in front of her, onto Aidan Lynch's back of his own seat, and the bottle was between her legs. "Is it always this hot?"

Indeed, he was sweating.

"No, just the good old English summers being hotter than ever," Aquila shrugged. She flicked her wand over him and he twitched in surprise. "Cooling charms. Magic makes our lives easier, not harder." She flicked her wand towards herself and her temperature cooled only a few degrees. But it made the intense sun more bearable. She grinned towards Dudley as he stretched out and sipped from her bottle. "Love magic, huh?"

"It's wicked useful."

"I honestly don't know how you get by sometimes," Aquila admitted. "Medicine that cures diseases in five minutes, instant teleportation to destinations..." She turned her head towards him. "Do you ever have that assignment you don't feel like writing but you have to get it done by the next class?"

"Of course," Dudley shrugged.

She grinned at him. "We have a quill that does the assignment by itself - you just talk to it when you feel like adding something. Of course you have to copy it onto another piece of parchment so it's in your own handwriting, but it cuts research and everything down to an art." He glanced at her in absolute surprise. "And we also have books in the library that if you request them, they'll come to you."

"What else?"

She shrugged slightly, her head falling onto his shoulder. "We have loads of things. I don't know what your equivalents would be. We don't have electricity, however. Fire and radios are about as advanced as that department goes. And we don't have your nifty little pens. We have quills and ink bottles. Paper to you is parchment to us. We don't have science - we don't believe in science really. Just the basics like weather and how gravity works and such. We don't learn any of that in school. We're taught to read and write at home and how to count and such, too." She paused, glancing at him. "What are you taught in primary school... that is what it's called, yes?"

Dudley rolled his shoulders, mindful of her head. "Reading, counting, colors."

"Colors?" Aquila questioned, fighting the grin on her face. "What colors?"

"Er, red... blue, those colors."

"What's red?" she asked innocently.

He shot her an incredulous look. "What?"

She giggled, "Kidding, sorry. Continue."

His cheeks turned pink a tad at how easily he fell for that. "Er, right, colors. And then there's math like multiplication and such. Science, like genetics and rain and electricity."

"Genetics?" she questioned. "What about it?"

"Like how we are the way we are. What genes cause diseases and such. How are things genetic - er, what do we inherit from our parents?" This seemed to be his element. She had finally found it. Merlin, how long had it taken and she should have known it would be connected to medicine. "There are so many diseases we can't cure. For instance, cancer or the common cold."

"Oh, the common cold was an easy one," Aquila told him. "Pepper Up potion. Also good for hypothermia and any other sickness who's symptoms contain fever, sniffles, and coughing."

"You've cured the common cold?"

"Well, I haven't specifically," Aquila admitted. "But it's pretty much cured. We still get it, but nothing a quick potion can't fix."

"What about cancer?"

"I ..." It couldn't be the astrology sign, so she went with the answer she knew wouldn't show her lack of Muggle intelligence. "I'm unfamiliar with that one. What is it?" She glanced at Dudley in curiousity, her head never leaving his shoulder as she glanced up at him.

"You've never... it's a terminal disease," he stated after he got over his initial surprise. He swallowed, his hand rubbing his chest briefly as he paused. "Uh, sort of inherited, I suppose, from parents or grandparents. Sometimes it skips a generation, or five, or eight, or sometimes it could never have shown up and you just get it. Usually not spotted until it's too late."

"Too late?" she asked quietly.

"It kills you," he commented, equally as quiet. "Spreads through your body, and you can't see it, you can only feel it after it's done enough damage. Once you notice it, sometimes you have days, weeks, months... rarely years." He paused as Aquila tried to figure out how Muggles could just live without noticing something like that. Dark magic, it seemed. It had to be curable.

"And no cure?" she asked him, confused. "But there would have to be something that can stop it. If it's as common as you make it sound-"

"No cure. Only delayments, I suppose. There's this thing called chemotherapy. Sort of dangerous and makes you feel really sick. You lose your hair and vomit a lot and you feel weak."

"And that's a ... medication? Like those pills you gave me for my hangover?"

"No," he shook his head. "It's radiation therapy. It's these... waves a lot like sunlight, and it goes through your body and is supposed to kill the cancer cells."

"Supposed to?" she asked, biting her lip. That didn't sound very effective.

"Doesn't always work," he admitted. His voice had grown unusually quiet, as though he were afraid of being overheard. Aquila rested her wand on her lap and took his hand resting on his own. Perhaps he knew someone with the disease? Her fingers were squeezed by his own. "Sometimes people refuse the chemo. If the chemo works, they're safe. But there's always a chance it could come back. If it doesn't work... sometimes they start to stop the treatments. They don't want to feel bad before they die."

"That's horrible," Aquila said softly. Her eyes darted across the pitch, watching as someone that was sleeping was hit directly with a bludger. Medical personal were heading for them immediately with a stretcher. Ouch.

"Yeah," Dudley agreed. "The silent killer, it's called."

"We don't have that in my world. Terminal diseases that are passed down can be cured easily enough in just a single generation with no chance of it coming back." She bit her lip as he acknowledged her words. "We don't have this cancer... At least I don't think we do. The magic in our bodies makes us remarkably resiliant to most diseases. Such as the Bubonic Plague. Our lot survived. Hid out in the wizarding world and didn't leave until it was over. Muggleborns were practically nonexistant then..." She tried to think back in the history books to anything she had ever read concerning diseases and wizard folk. "No imperfections, really. Rarely glasses. Potter's probably the only one in our school that wears them - usually older people do. No mind issues - like dyslexia. Though, I will say there are plenty of mentally unstable people in the world." She moved her head so that she was closer to him. "Cancer... we don't have it. We may have once, but I'd have to read up on it. We live exceptionally long compared to you lot."

"How long would you say your life span is?"

"Professor Trelawney, our school psychic, I suppose, says I'll live to be a hundred and thirty nine. While I disagree, saying a ripe old age of one hundred and ten." He frowned slightly at that. "Though men do tend to live longer. Potter's grandfather, Charlus Potter, lived to be one hundred and forty seven. His wife Dorea Black, who was just a few years younger than him - and by few I mean around twenty - lived to be a hundred and three. Always in the papers when I was little. The Boy Who Lived, denied the custody of his own grandparents. They died a few years after the first war ended." She paused. "We do have terminal illnesses, however. They're originated from Dark Magic. It's believed that all diseases stem from Dark Magic. I once had a family member who touched a cursed object. They began to wither away, their magic doing whatever it could to heal them, but eventually they didn't have much left. I suppose that's a lot like that thing you call cancer."

"Sure," Dudley agreed. He shifted a tad closer, propping his leg on his lap so that they were crossed in that ridiculous way men cross their legs. Aquila gazed at their entwined hands before looking back to the pitch. They did this touchy stuff - held hands, stood beside each other, talked about personal things... Merlin, no wonder her mother thought they were shagging. "What about leprosy?"

"Archaic," Aquila assured him.

"Chicken Pox?"

"We have Dragon Pox," Aquila admitted. "I'd assume that's the same thing. Nasty red boils all over your body, and you get this horrible fever like a dragon's been cooking ya."

"Er, no, not the same thing," Dudley chuckled. "Ours are tiny spots that itch like hell and you're contageous so you have to stay home from school for a few days."

"Is there a cure?" she asked. "Is it deadly?"

"No, not deadly as far as I know. Just itchy. As for a cure, well... there's a shot, but sometimes it doesn't do anything to prevent the chicken pox."

"Then why get the shot if its not deadly. If it goes away, I mean, there's no need to get it. Immune systems are made for that stuff-"

"it's inconvenient to some people," Dudley shrugged lightly. "We do that stuff, I guess. We take medicines and get shots that's supposed to prevent a disease, but it may end up giving us another. And the side effects are sometimes worse than the disease itself."

"Well, that's just stupid. Nature provides all the cures you need," Aquila insisted. "No offense to Muggle methods, but all you need is to snip a few herbs and put them in a cauldron and boom. Instant cure to the Common Cold. Of course, it only works if a witch or wizard makes the potion. Otherwise, it would just be gobbledeegook."

"Gobbledeegook?" Dudley asked, stiffling a laugh.

"It's a good description for mush," Aquila defended with an eyeroll. "Merlin, so critical."

"Why wouldn't it work for Muggles, though?" Dudley inquired. "If you're doing the exact same process, the exact same method."

Aquila faltered. She didn't quite know why, she just knew it did. "I'm not sure... I'd imagine the magic has something to do with it, but it's not like we use spells on the ingredients when we make potions... Perhaps that's a theory I'll test some day..." She shrugged, but sprung to life as a bludger came their way. Too high for her to go for it, so she let someone else take it and relaxed against Dudley's side again. "You're still going to school for accounting and all that, aren't you?"

"Er, yeah, I haven't quite gotten around to talking about medicine."

"Well," Aquila said quietly. "It's not like they're horrible education options, either. Accounting and such are rather useful, aren't they?"

"But the only use Dad wants is Grunnings."

She patted his arm good naturedly. "You do what you make it do, Dudley. If you don't want to do... don't make it do." He shot her a look that told her what she just said didn't make sense. She shrugged it off. "If you win, what's your prank?"

"Hmmm..." He thought about it for a moment, and Aquila let him think as she ticked off a few boxes on her parchment. She glanced at Dudley's on his lap to see that he hadn't filled a few in. Did he think some teams were going empty, or did he think they were horrible? Or was he not paying attention? "Well considering you've won four years in a row..."

"And I intend to make this my fifth," Aquila prompted with a wink.

"Precisely why I don't think I'll be winning. However, if I do, I reckon my prank would..." He grinned suddenly. "I'm afraid I can't tell you until we know for sure who wins."

Her jaw dropped in surprise. "What? But-But you _have _to tell me!"

"I can't," Dudley admitted with a smirk. "I'm unable to inform you of something before it happens. I don't see the future like you lot."

She snorted and crossed her arms, leaning away from him. "Fine. Don't tell me. Don't expect me to help you fill in any of your blanks on your parchment, either."

"Oh, they won't be placed on teams," Dudley assured her. "I'm fairly confident in that regards."

"Yes, well, someone's got to take the spots, don't they?"

"Well, sure, but who's to say they won't ask someone from another day?" Dudley returned. "If they're a decent flier, they can ask for another spot, even if they aren't particularly great at it, couldn't they?"

"You seem very confident in this theory," Aquila said slowly, though she knew that Quidditch was strict and very serious. If you didn't audition for the position, you were next to never considered for it. Only very rare cases like undiscovered talent. All the blokes on his paper didn't have undiscovered talent - especially since they no doubt played quidditch frequently and had at least tried every other position.

"Oh, I am," Dudley shrugged. "I'm probably wrong, but I might as well stick to it and see where it gets me."

"Very well."

So they continued watching the pitch and Aquila only counted a measley three bludgers she hit by night's fall. And as if magic had awoken them, the twins leapt from their seats and grinned at each other as they climbed over the Irish and towards the rails. Their backpacks, which Aquila had suspiciously noted earlier, were opened to reveal a load of pyrotechnics. She grinned in delight and glanced at Dudley.

"The party begins." She hurriedly woke the Irish and soon word spread of the impending show. Hardly anyone left the pitch.

"The trials for Day Two officially draw to a close," the announcer stated. "Those that didn't get a chance to complete their trials will be schedule to compete on the eighth day. Day Three will begin tomorrow at nine in the morning."

The announcer began to leave and there were chants.

"Weasley. Weasley. Weasley. Weasley. Weasley!"

Aquila joined in, laughing as she clapped her hands to go with the beat of the chant. And then the twins cast an incendio on their bags and all hell broke loose.

Two quite large rockets launched into the air, streaming towards the middle of the pitch and her and Dudley had to crane their necks to look up. And they exploded in a confetti of green. "Yeah!" Cheers cried all around the pitch. The Weasley twins bowed deeply in acknowledgement and Aquila couldn't help but grin as the green slowly faded away to gold and then it began to shimmer - to sparkle brilliantly. Well, this was new.

And then it formed two leperchauns. "Merlin's beard!" she gasped. They were quite animate and in no less solidity than before. In fact, they seemed to be getting more solid looking as the seconds ticked by. And the two leperchauns - one facing the north stands, the other the south - turned towards each other simultaneously and ran smack into each other. There were cries of "ooo" and then the leperchauns leapt up and began to beat each other bloody - only instead of blood it was shimmers of gold.

"These are your fireworks?"

"These are the twins invention," Aquila corrected. She shook her head, her eyes never leaving the brawl. "They're bloody brilliant, I tell you. These are better than the leperchauns at the World Cup." The twins were climbing back up the stands, shaking hands with those they passed, giving off puking pastels and Fever Fudges. One leperchaun gave the other a particularly nasty uppercut and as soon as the injured leperchaun went down, they both exploded into a shimmer of gold.

"Woah!" Dudley gasped. Coins rained down on the crowd - the gold shimmering suddenly all made sense - and Dudley picked up a few coins from his lap. "Is this real gold?"

"It'll disappear within a few hours," she said quietly. "Leperchauns are natural tricksters. Get what they want for free. There's a reason you never find gold at the end of the rainbow. By the time you get there, it all disappears." He brushed off the coins from his person so they clattered along the stands and Aquila stood suddenly, climbing over the seat until she found Seamus Finnigan - a Gryffindor a year younger than her with sandy brown hair and a wicked eye for Ireland. "Oi, Finnigan!" she called. He looked up from a snog session with one of the Patils - Padma? Probably Pavarti.

"What, Black? I'm kinda busy here!"

"Where's the ale, mate?" she asked, spreading her arms to gesture around them. "We've got a week from now until the match and you don't have the traditional ale at the ready?"

While her tone was light, she was reprimanding him for neglecting his duties. They did, afterall, all have a roll to play to show their Irish pride. Aquila's was the results day. Twins were in charge of pyro and they'd have a show every night from now on - each night getting better than the first. Finnigan brought the ale - his father's brew - and the Irish brought themselves. Anyone else contributed what they could.

"Is it always the Irish that are celebrated?" Dudley asked as Finnigan got up, muttering under his breath and heading for the top of the stands. She heard him cry "Accio Ale trunk!" and she watched, stepping back to her seat, as something soared in the air towards them.

"Of course," Aquila grinned. "The English, Welsh, and Scottish absolutely hate it. Northern Ireland gets in on the fun, though, and they celebrate with us. But Ireland hasn't lost a match in the last ten years against any of the aforementioned teams, so we get the bragging rights to celebrate until they do something about it." She glanced around them. "This is the Irish side of the Pitch. All Ireland fans from Owner's Box down to about two o'clock from this point on." she pointed to a spot just about forty five degrees from where they were sitting, dead on straight ahead and to the right. "Basically, we rule. And we're sitting in the center of it all. This section of the stands has the biggest party."

"So this is how a wizard party starts," Dudley murmured.

"No, this is how the pre party starts." Finnigan caught a large bag and he pulled a few miniturized items out of the bag before he began to enlarge them. She grinned and gestured towards it. "That's how a wizard party starts."


	14. Chapter 14

Her head was swimming with all the alcohol she had consumed in just the few short hours of the night. Music was playing on a phonograph, curtosy of Katie Bell, and she had tried to get Dudley to dance with her, but that chance disappeared in a fit of giggles and stumbling over each other's feet until they both decided sitting was nice.

"So..." Dudley strung out and Aquila flipped her head to look at him, her hair dancing around her in a fit of curls. She had long since taken it out of its braid. "I take it anything that happened between us would throw your mother into fits."

"Oh, most assuredly," Aquila replied. Giggling, she leaned towards him so she could whisper in his ear. "She'd get over it eventually."

"So, I shouldn't be wandering over-"

She silenced him with a quick motion. She leaned over him and pressed her lips to his own. They had never shared a kiss before. Perhaps it was the alcohol that helped her make such a bold action possible between them. She hardly had a care for that, though, when he firmly gripped her waist and deepened the kiss. Oh, Merlin, this was heavenly. His tongue tasted of chocolate and firewhiskey. He pulled back suddenly, leaving Aquila breathing deeply and staring into his eyes as they watched her.

"I had a dream last night."

Dream? Oh, she had told him to tell her. But that had been the second day of trials. Tomorrow was results day. Aquila leaned back slightly and watced him. "You did? About what?"

"You," he said simply. It would have sounded cheesy coming from anyone else, but from Dudley... Well, it made Aquila's cheeks flush slightly and she smiled slightly as she leaned closer to kiss him.

"You did?" she murmured. "What about?"

How he heard her over the partying crowd, she had no idea, but she kissed him deeply, letting him formulate an answer before he spoke it. But when she pulled away with a small grin on her face, he seemed to have a bit of trouble deciding what he was going to say. "What were we talking about again?"

She giggled, kissing his cheek as she reminded him, "Your dream... Was it a good dream?"

"Oh, it was very good," Dudley smirked. Oh, Merlin. He kissed along her jaw as he spoke, his voice low and his lips unbelievably soft against her. She let her eyes flutter close as he continued. "Let's see... Oh, yeah, we were in this ... this tent." He seemed to lose focus as he kissed her pulse point and Aquila thought she was losing her focus, too. Merlin, since when was he unbelievably good at this? Of course, she didn't want to ask, but... She gasped as his kisses reached her shoulder. Oh, Merlin. "And it was dark and you were... God, you were wearing this unbelievably short dress."

"Mmm, I think I could find a dress," Aquila murmured. His lips paused on her pulse point again, his warm breath gently carressing it.

"Bloody hell..." He seemed to be struggling with something and Aquila's lips twitched as she knew exactly what it was. Opening her eyes, she peaked at him to see his eyes shut, squeezed shut, really, and thinking very hard. "And then there was this..." He paused slightly. "There was this light and it was all around you and God..." He kissed her pulse point again, before resting his head there. "I really need to stop this before we have a problem."

She laughed lightly and moved her head slightly so that she was kissing him. His jaw, his neck, his collarbone. "You smell so good." And he did, like the cologne he always wore. And it always made her knees weak and her head fuzzy. "So good..." She pressed a kiss to the spot just by his ear and his breath stopped. Merlin, she found that spot. "But we need to stop... Yes," she continued more firmly as she gripped each of his shoulders and shifted back a bit so they were eye to eye. "I..." She blushed red and ducked her head. "I've only done this once so... So I just don't want to rush into things..."

He nodded, not seeming put out at all by her admission - or her stopping. "Understood. I said you set the pace."

She nodded carefully and bit her lip. His eyes darted to it before lifting up to her eyes, dark brown, and his... a bluish color. "I'm sorry," she said quietly.

"Sorry? There's nothing to be sorry about," he assured her. He lifted his arms, letting them rest on her waist and she blushed darkly as she realized how they were sitting. Her straddling his lap like some sort of harlot. But she really didn't want to move. "I'm not going to push you." She smiled and kissed him gently before pulling back again. "I may be a bit of a jerk, but I'm not _that_ bad."

"I don't think you're a jerk," Aquila informed him. "Piers, yes, but you, not even if you tried." She paused, grinning slightly. "Well, maybe if you tried, but not unintentionally a jerk."

"Good," Dudley smirked. She pressed her lips to the edge of the smirk and then pressed her face into his neck. Good. They always ended their conversations with good. Well, maybe not always, but a lot of the times. It was starting to become their thing.

"Good," Aquila repeated quietly. She gasped suddenly and pulled away from Dudley, standing and straightening her jersey which seemed to have gotten mussed up. "Oh, Merlin, my mother has spies here. And she could appear and-and she may take us home before the match tomorrow if she saw that-" Aquila shook her head and glanced around suspiciously. But she couldn't see anyone paying attention to them really. She kissed Dudley lightly. "I'm sorry-"

"Because you won't kiss me in public? Only when the doors are closed?"

She sank into the chair beside him, sighing, "You know that's not why, Dudley. My mother... the only reason is my mother and you know that. If my mother wouldn't ward me in my room for a century because she specifically made me promise I wouldn't do anything with you, I would be shagging you right here, in front of everybody..." She paused, grimacing slightly. "Okay, maybe not shagging. But I'd sure be giving you a right snog session that could potentially make my lungs collapse from lack of oxygen." She slumped in her seat, crossing her arms as she stared at the dark sky above them, the fireworks contrasting greatly. They were two knights, with an army of soldiers behind them, as they clashed. The twins seemed to enjoy making fireworks battle. The knight's swords clanked like thunder and the men behind them charged forward into battle. "We just need to be careful in this crowd."

"Right."

He was mad. She frowned and looked over the pulsating crowd, her alcohol addled brain pulsing with it, but she didn't have a headache yet. So she cast a sobering charm on herself and put her wand in her pocket. "I'll... I'll go over there. You want space."

"No, I don't. I want to talk."

She glanced at him and he seemed took take a deep breath to relax. "Talk about what?"

"If anything did happen between us, it wouldn't be public, would it?" He seemed to come to this conclusion over whatever evidence he had in his head, because Aquila began to protest, he continued. "And your mother-"

"I told you, my mother would get over it," she interrupted, because that seemed to be the only time she could put to rest his ridiculous theories. "And I never said that we'd be private. I said that we can't do this now. I'd rather my week away from her be uninterrupted by spies and my mother. I don't want to kiss you and think about my mother. I'm saying we can't snog senseless in public because my mother would throw a very public fit over that and I don't want there to be a fit of any kind - because it will be in the newspaper that the recluse wife of a Death Eater throws a fit over daughter dating a Muggle. And that's the press my family doesn't need... that's the press my enemies can't read, because it will put you in danger. It will put your parents in danger... So I'm saying we wait until my mother's spies can't see us, okay?"

It seemed to make sense, because he nodded slowly. "So this is to protect my family."

"Yes, because if it were to wait, and start privately, then no one would take such notice to it and you'd be left alone. And when I say privately, I mean, without my mother's emotional fiasco, okay?" She paused and stared at Dudley, begging him to understand. "I do really like you, Dudley. And I don't want to hide that, but for the next few days, that's necessary. And then whatever happens - well, it happens. But... I don't want this in the papers. So it _has_ to be quiet."

"Alright," Dudley said after a moment. "I just... I don't like the idea of not-"

"I know," Aquila nodded, knowing how he'd finish. They both weren't used to a quiet relationship, it seemed. They'd have to try to start. "You're my bridge, you know. That I need to cross. You're on the other side of it... So I reckon that means that any snogging will only make me step the last two steps."

"Two steps, now? What happened to the length of the bridge?"

She smirked at him, leaning into his shoulder briefly. "You did."

0o0o0o0o0o0

The evening air was crisp as Euryale Black walked silently along the stone path. The hedges were tall around her, as dark as the sky above, and as looming as the decision she had made. She drew her cloak tighter around herself as she neared the end and stood at the door. This was the moment. She could turn back now, turn back and listen to both of her children, or she could continue on and ensure that her children would be protected. Her daughter would be protected.

She beat the knocker twice against the door and waited to be tended to. Aquila would never forgive her for this, but it was for the best. Euryale knew what she had to do.

"Madame Black," an elf greeted. "What business does Madame have in Malfoy Manor?"

"I wish to speak to Lucius about an urgent matter," Euryale spoke sharply. "Where is he?"

"Master is in the study, Madame. Shall Breggin take Madame to Master?"

"Yes," Euryale said crisply and then the elf was taking her hand and they apparated to the doors just outside the study. Euryale dropped the hood of her cloak and took a deep breath. She was in. It was too late to leave, now. She knocked twice.

"Enter," the regal tone of the man she had gone to school with and seen frequently spoke from inside. Her last chance. She pushed open the door and the elf skittered away with a squeak. Lucius looked up at her entrance, but didn't betray any hint of surprise. They hadn't seen each other in years and yet he hadn't aged a day. Then again, neither did she. "Euryale, I must say, I'm pleased to see you. I've received your owl."

"Yes, I'm afraid I couldn't wait until morning," Euryale said regretfully. "I apologize for dropping by unannounced."

"Take a seat," Lucius said, gesturing to the two wing backed chairs in front of his desk. Euryale walked towards one, taking her cloak off and resting it on the back, before she sat carefully. "Tea?"

"No, thank you," Euryale said quietly. "I'm here to discuss the contents of my letter."

"You are sure this is the route you wish to go? Malfoy Enterprises prides itself in its work. But if you should change your mind-"

"I won't," Euryale interrupted. "This needs to be done. She will understand when the time comes."

"When will you inform your daughter of your plans?" Lucius asked curiously. "An hour beforehand? Perhaps days? You know who has returned."

"The Dark Lord's business does not concern my daughter, Lucius," Euryale told him sharply. "My daughter is my concern only."

He nodded once and passed her a scroll of parchment. "All it requires is your signature. I will acquire the other in the morning and seal it." Euryale nodded and took the offered quill to sign. "You understand the terms, of course?"

"It will occur," Euryale said firmly. "I will not let her-"

"And if it were not to occur," Lucius interrupted, "I will have no qualms telling the Dark Lord where your loyalty lies in this war."

She understood the threat. She would not live to see outcome. The Dark Lord would kill her for being a traitor. She knew too many secrets about the dark for her to be dismissed without a second glance. Her husband had discovered them all, and she just needed to pass the word to those in charge of the Order when the time came. "It will occur."

"Then sign." And Euryale signed.


	15. Chapter 15

Name after name was called and Aquila ticked off each one she got correct, using a red marker to slash through the names she didn't. She glanced at Dudley to see that he was fairing pretty well, himself. It was Angelina who announced she looked like she was in the lead that worried Aquila. She couldn't lose to Angelina! She'd have blue hair dye for weeks in her hair or something equally as revolting.

She was a Ravenclaw, but she wasn't that dedicated to her house colors.

"How many do you have?" Aquila asked Dudley quietly, not wanting to be overheard.

"Twenty three right, so far."

Aquila bit her lip. "Twenty eight," she admitted. "Ang, how many?"

"Twenty six."

Aquila grinned and glanced at Dudley before glancing back at her parchment. "Shit," She muttered, suppressing a giggle. She was winning.

"Twelve, thanks for asking," George stated.

"Thirteen," Fred grinned. He frowned as they announced another name. "Right, make that twelve. I was so sure about that bloke."

She peaked at Dudley's parchment to see that he was doing pretty good. Maybe even better than he was saying. "So what happens tonight?"

"Tonight, we head to the other pitch, for the match tomorrow," Aquila told him. "We set up shop in a fancy building, so no more tent nonsense." Aquila glanced at him with a smirk. "Real meals by the boys parents and basic pampering compared to this. But, before we leave, we sort of celebrate whoever wins with a good old fashioned game."

"Game?"

"Exploding Snaps. I'll teach you, if you want," Aquila informed him.

"And I take it they explode."

"Does anything else in the Wizarding World not explode?" she questioned. "Of course." Her head rested on his own as more names were called off. Merlin, this was the most boring part off the trials. The waiting.

It was well past noon by the time all the people were announced. "And now we count, and count others," Aquia told Dudley as everyone started to pass their parchments around. She took his and handed hers to George as she began to count. Bloody hell... Eighty two? That was excellent!

"Eighty two," she announced to the group when they finished.

"Sixty seven."

"Thirty nine."

"Twelve."

"Ninety eight-" It was George that said it. Bloody hell, nobody could have gotten better that that, could they?

"Sixty nine."

"Fifty three."

"Ninety-" Aquila's heart stopped as she stared at Aidan. Please, please, no, "-three."

She exhaled in relief and listened to the rest of the numbers. Dudley was the last one to state the numbers - what Alicia had. "Ninety seven."

"Holy bloody fuck," Aquila breathed. "Yes!" she cried in victory. She shook Alicia's hand firmly. "We're always close, Spinnet. Always close. I fear next year you'll beat me."

"It's my single goal in life, Black," Alicia smirked.

"So, what's the price, then?" the twins demanded. They each wore evil grins on their faces that seemed to only shine when they had the prospect of a prank. Aquila rubbed her hands together and closed her eyes as she thought. "Normally I'd target the Slytherins, but with the changes recently, any attention off of me is probably best," Aquila said carefully. She had to think it out like a Ravenclaw, after all. "I would say Amos, but I really want to try out, so that's out. There's Dudley, but I'd rather not have to possibly scar him for life from magic. And then there's the twins, who of course, can't prank themselves. So I guess that leaves me with my mother."

"You were aiming for your mother the entire time."

"Obviously," Aquila grinned. She gave the twins her full attention. "So, this is what I'm thinking. We charm every mirror in the house to give whoever looks inside a distorted appearance. But it's so subtly she doesn't realize it. She just truly thinks she has an enlarged chin or something. Looks are everything to my mother. What better way to get revenge."

"We'd have to get into your house somehow, and get her away," the twins agreed. "Any ideas?"

"Tea with my mum," Dudley offered. "Mum would like it, and Aquila's mum knows my mum well enough-"

"Perfect," Aquila insisted to him, smiring. "So?"

"We can do it," the twins said firmly. "And sell look alikes in our shop."

"You gotta get the shop first."

"Already looking at places in Diagon Alley," George informed her. "We so far have three places we just need to put a deposit on."

"Yeah, and we already have half of the deposit just in last years puking pastells," Fred continued.

"How far away are you?" Aquila asked. "Maybe I'll make a quality investment for the return of a discount - under the counter, of course."

The twins waved it away, not going to take her offer. "Potter's already given us his money from the Triwizard Tournament. Once we figure out which place to take, we'll already be set. Though investments are welcome, we aren't looked to be invested upon anytime soon."

"And I'd like to maintain my innocence to my person," Fred smirked. "You're invited to opening, though."

"Send me a postcard," Aquila muttered absently, though she was interested. She looked at the twins intently. "How much time would you need?"

"An hour at most."

"I can get Mum to do that," Dudley told them. Aquila grinned at him. "Yeah, she's good at making diversions."

"Mate, you're officially one of us now," the twins said seriously. "That means you gotta do your part."

"My part?" Dudley asked.

"You can't piss me off, basically," Aquila smirked. "Because then I'll change my mind about the prank and the twins research too much for that to happen." She rolled up the parchment in her hands. "Oh, and you can't distract me, because I have to place silencing charms in the garden and cancel them at the exact same moment as the twins apparation."

"Distract you?" Dudley asked, confused.

Aquila winked. "That's not something you discuss in public."

"Unless it's us lot. She any good, mate?" Lynch asked.

"Yeah, you were practically eating each other's tongues out last night," Quigley piped up.

Aquila flushed, but it was Dudley that spoke. "We haven't like... we've snogged, yeah."

"Uh, how disappointing," Angelina sighed. "Oh, well, the night's still young."

Aquila didn't like the topic of her love life and instead spoke up. "How about what happens between us isn't tossed around for a friend of my mother's to possibly overhear, yes?"

"I thought your mother was on the side of the Order," Aidan said, confused.

"But she's still trying to put Aquila into a marriage contract, so she's trying to lay low," Dudley helpfully supplied.

Aquila shrugged sheepishly. "The latest bloke is Simon Otterburn," Aquila admitted. Lynch grimaced.

"That bloke is such a sleaze-ball!" Lynch protested.

"Preciesly what my brother told my mother. He also spoke horribly of every other bloke he knew of to throw my mother off. That only lasts until the next letter. Can you believe she wanted me to get married this Christmas?" Aquila gave a snort of disgust. "I told her that I needed to win the Quidditch cup at school first, and focus on school. I'm not too sure she bought it, but Otterburn is persistant. She got an owl from him right before we left to get here." Aquila rolled her eyes. "Anyway, no more about that. I've got a fall back if she tries anything, so what time is the portkey?"

"Eight sharp," Tara stated. "So meet at the tent at seven."

"Got it," Aquila grinned. She took Dudley's arm. "You wanna see something great?"

"I'm in."

"The fact that you didn't even ask what it was makes me amazingly ecstatic with you right now," Aquila informed him simply. The others laughed and she pulled Dudley away, her wand out in her other hand, before she rolled her eyes. "We're going to head to my school mate's tent."

"Oh?"

"You'll see," she grinned. "They're all a bunch of bookworms, so they don't really know how to party, but since you aren't fond of big loud parties, I figure it'll be more your gig."

"Well, you are fifth time champion, so what you say goes."

"And the fact that you remember that, makes me extremely ecstatic with you," Aquila said, amazed. She shook her head as she met his eyes. "It's like your memory is perfect."

"Er, well, not really," Dudley said, embarrassed. His cheeks twinged pink, but she shook her head again and clutched his arm tightly as she pulled him down the stairs. "So your school mates, they'll know I'm Muggle, yeah?"

"Shhh," she said sharply, glancing around them. No one seemed to have heard. "Dangerous business going around saying that in the open like that. Though I'm surprised it was kept a secret this long. But yeah, they'll know. Most of them are good people. Chang will probably be there, but..." Aquila shrugged. "I'll just ignore her. No wand fights. No arguments. Whatever she tries to rile me up with, I let it blow over. She just wants me to yell at her because she feels guilty. Well, two can play at that game."

"You want her to yell at you because you feel guilty?" Dudley asked, confused.

"No, I just know what she's trying to do, so I'm one step ahead. I am the eagle, Dudley. And she is my prey," Aquila said seriously, her eyes watching in front of her as she led them down the stairs, towards the party she knew would be dull but maybe he'd like the change of pace for a night. He looked a bit peaky when he woke up that morning.

"Er, right."

"Just don't get in any academic debates you know you'll lose," Aquila warned him. The tent they were approaching some ten minutes later was the same as all the others, except the flaps for the door were a dark blue with an eagle head embroidered along it. Aquila entered and heads popped up in surprise to seeing her. "So, who's popping out the chess board?"

"Aquila, mate, I thought you were leaving," Roger Davies, the Quidditch captain of Ravenclaw last year and all the years before, said as he rose from behind a chess board. How stereotypical. Aquila shook his hand, smirking.

"We were going to, but I decided to check in the nest, first. Ah, there she is!" She spotted the eccentric blonde - and could have spotted her anywhere - sitting on the floor, her eyes closed and very still. "Hey, Luna, what are you doing, mate?"

The blonde's eyes opened and she gave Luna a serious smile. "Searching for the plumpies, of course. They're frightened away by eyes being open, so I'm hoping to attract them to me."

Dudley looked confused and Aquila mimicked the smoking of a joint and he seemed to understand, acting as though what the girl said was a serious matter.

"Right, well, stand up, little chicklet." Aquila held out her hand and the girl stood. Luna Lovegood was wearing an outfit made of feathers that suspiciously looked like a Veela, but Aquila supposed it could have been an eagle as well. Luna lurched forward suddenly and seized Dudley's hand in her own.

"It's so nice to meet Aquila's friend. You're different, the plumpies are telling me."

"I'm, er, not like you, if that's what you mean."

There were some snickers from the rest of the tent and Aquila shot them a glare. Honestly, they were horrible to the girl. They shut up and Aquila turned to Luna. "Say, Luna, why don't we play a game of snaps?"

"You're just asking to be polite, and to avoid Cho Chang in the back corner," Luna said with a small smile. Aquila glanced in the corner and found the Asian glancing towards the new party, before Aquila glanced away quickly, a frown tainting her lips. "I was going to ask if you wanted to go to the Hufflepuff tent with me. They have the most delicious dragon balls."

Aquila nearly choked on her tongue as she held back a snort. "What?"

"The hor d'oeuvres," Luna said simply. "They have dragon balls. They really are delicious. I can't understand why people don't eat them more."

"Um, Luna, I don't know if Dudley will like dragon balls."

"Oh, he won't, but he's too polite to say so," Luna informed the pair of them.

"Yeah, before you go and do that, Black, can I talk to you?" Davies spoke up. Aquila felt her eyes sparkle as she nodded and flounced over to him. He took her arm and steered her away, towards the far side of the tent, that was empty.

"What's up?" Aquila asked, trying to keep the hopeful grin off her face.

"You win this year?"

"Of course. I can predict the team's choices better than the team can themselves," Aquila smirked. "All in the body language and that seasons competition. You win yours?"

"Luna did."

That was a surprise. "She's telling us we have to all go on a plumpy excursion with her when school starts, so I'm saved, thankfully," Davies laughed. He looked a lot like Neville Longbottom, but older and he had a more aristocratic air about him. He was hot, there was no denying it, with an amazing Quidditch career and body under his belt.

"Well, congrats on making Southport," Aquila told him. "You really were great out there. Never lost faith in you for a second."

"Thanks," he said, a small smile on his face. "Speaking of Quidditch..." Aquila raised an eyebrow, her mind doing nothing but repeating _Ask me to be captain, ask me to be captain, ask me to be captain- _"You do intend on playing Ravenclaw this year, right?"

"What else would I play? Hufflepuff?" she countered with a laugh. "Of course I'm playing. I'm not giving the game up for the world."

"Good," Davies said, clearing his throat as if it was uncomfortable. "I trust there won't be any issues between you and Chang?"

"There weren't any issues last year between us, there won't be any this year," Aquila promised. "We'll always be your team, and your team doesn't let personal issues get in the way of the game."

"You know, it was a close call between naming either you or Chang for captain this year." Fuck, this was the letting you down easy speech. "Chang's pretty convincing." Did that mean he slept with her, because Aquila wouldn't put it past her.

"She got it, didn't she?" Aquila said quietly, deflating. That meant she had to try out again, and Chang would eat her alive at the chance. "Of course she did, she's seeker." Merlin, and she wanted it _so_ bad.

"Actually, I'm giving it to you," Davies admitted. "You're a killer on the field. And I've seen you play with a broken leg, refusing medical treatment because Chang was close to catching the snitch. That's dedication you don't find just anywhere." Davies sighed. "But when there are Seeker try-outs, you have to be fair to Chang."

"I only want the best team," Aquila promised. She squealed suddenly and tackled him in a hug. "Thank you so much! Oh, Merlin, you won't regret this, I promise! We're going to get the Quidditch Cup this year. Gryffindor and Slytherin are going down." She pulled away from him and couldn't help herself from bouncing on her toes. "Oh, Merlin, this is amazing!"

"I thought you'd think so. So, to make it official, Flitwick owled me this a few weeks ago." He dug around in his pocket and pulled out the shiny silver Quidditch Captain pin emblazed upon an eagle head. He took her hand before lowering himself to one knee. Aquila rolled her eyes and smacked his hand away.

"Honestly? This display isn't necessary."

"It's tradition," Davies informed her cheekily. "Will you, Aquila Carina Black, take this badge and become the best Quidditch Captain Ravenclaw's seen since my captaincy?"

She snatched the badge out of his hands, before she smacked his away as he tried to take both of her hands. "Yes, now get up off the floor. You look like an idiot."

"She said yes!" Davies cried, standing up suddenly and gripping her upper arms.

"Don't you dare," she hissed at him, angling her head away from him so he couldn't even think about planting a kiss on her.

"Tradition."

"Fuck tradition," Aquila insisted. She stepped out of his reach and stared at the badge in her hands. Her badge. Bloody hell. She had done it. "Holy shit, I'm afraid I'm going to lose it, now. What if I drop it in the mud or something?"

"Flitwick's got about eighty more to replace it. I lost about six of them," Davies smirked. No way, this was too precious to replace. This was... this was a moment! "But don't expect me to show up and start the whole thing all over again."

She rolled her eyes and grinned. "Thank you so much."

"You're welcome. You just better win."

"We will win," Aquila said with conviction.

"Good, now go to that Hufflepuff party. I need to maintain some dignity."

She snorted and hugged him tightly before she squealed and suddenly had her arms around Dudley's neck. "Captain!" she whispered in disbelief. Her arms tightened around his neck before she pulled away, her feet falling to the floor. Oops, she hadn't meant to jump on him. "Merlin, okay, I need to calm down."

"Congrats," Dudley smirked. She almost let him kiss her, but the sound of buzzing pulled her away from him. Her eyes found Luna, buzzing as she flapped her arms.

"Right, that's cue to go," Aquila sighed. She took the strange girl's arm. "Come on, Luna. Why don't you tell me what you're wearing."

"Oh, it's a Hufflepuff, of course," Luna said simply. "This is what is said they look like in the wild."

"What's a Hufflepuff?" Dudley asked once they were outside the tent.

"Er, it's a house," Aquila told him. "It's a last name, too, but, well... no one really knows what a Hufflepuff is."

"They're a cross between a badger and a bird," Luna said wisely. "It lays eggs that hatch as live animals, a lot like a platypus."

Aquila glanced at Dudley. "There you go." She glanced at Luna. "So why are you wearing it, chicklet?"

"You're going to wear a hole through that if you keep running your fingers across it," Luna smiled brightly at Aquila. She glanced towards the Hufflepuff tent a few yards away. "A boy in the Hufflepuff tent said he was looking forward to seeing me there. He said to dress nice."

Aquila felt a pang in her heart for the girl. "Luna, I don't think he meant dress up as a Hufflepuff. I think he wanted you to dress like you're ... well, like you're going out."

"Yes, I thought so too," Luna told the Black. And she continued towards the tent.

"Is she always like this?" Dudley asked Aquila quietly so the blonde wouldn't overhear.

"Yes, her father is quite eccentric as well... A lot of the Ravenclaws pick on her, stealing her things at night and hiding them in the castle... I just can't be mean to her. She's really a great girl and awfully wise if you look past all the plumpies business. But her mother died when she was very young and she saw the whole thing. I think that's sort of... it's sort of addled her a bit. Potion gone wrong. She was eight. I try to be nice to her and help her out, but she's just uniquely... herself."

"Interesting."

"Quite," Aquila agreed. "She's really smart though. Two years younger than us. But she can't wear that to see this secret admirer of hers." So she jogged a few steps to catch up to Luna and took her arm. "What if we dressed in something else, Luna? You can wear the Hufflepuff later, when it's cooler. But it's going to start to get hot, don't you think?"

"Oh, you're right," Luna said, but the thought already seemed to occur to her. "Well, I guess I could take it off."

Aquila didn't expect her to take it off in the middle of the pathway. Dudley looked decidedly embarrassed and glanced away as Luna pulled the feathered thing over her head. "Luna!" Aquila gasped. "You can't just-" But before Luna could cast a cloaking charm, she dropped the feathery material and she was wearing a... Merlin, she didn't look half bad. "Oh, that's perfect, Luna. I really like that shirt. Where did you get it?" Indeed, she was wearing a decent outfit underneath. A dark purple shirt that emphasized her blonde hair and a pair of Muggle jeans.

"My father made it for me," Luna said brightly. "Let's go."

Aquila and Dudley exchanged a glance before following. It turned out that the boy Luna wanted to meet was Justin Finch-Fletchley. A pompous idiot that Aquila despised, but Luna seemed to like him well enough. When Neville Longbottom arrived though, she politely left and went to him, talking animatedly about some sort of plant. Merlin, she could see those two together. She taught Dudley how to play Exploding Snaps and they were pretty rough at playing, and got a few singe marks, but made out with a few decent sickles worth. She still lost a few galleons, but whatever.

It was nearing seven when they announced they had to go. Hannah Abbott particularly liked Dudley, so she was sad to see him go, but Aquila promised that they'd no doubt all meet again sometime soon. Though Aquila doubted when that would happen.

"Got your badge?"

Aquila smiled up at Dudley, rolling her eyes. "Of course I do. Come on, we got to get to the tent before they leave without us."

"So where is this place, exactly?"

"It's Lynch's house. His mum lives there during Quidditch season to take care of the place. She cooks for the team, and the other mums help out during the days of matches. Like tonight and tomorrow night." She laughed. "You've never had Irish food, not even Tara's compares, until you eat that. Lynch grub, I call it."

"You and Lynch are close."

"Quidditch, I guess. I don't know. I've known him since I was eleven."

"Oh, yeah," Dudley murmured. Aquila glanced at him, sensing the mood change.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Lynch and I - there's nothing between us, you know. There never has been. He looks a lot like my brother, acts like him too. It'd be too weird."

"I know," Dudley insisted. "It's just... you have a lot of blokes in your life."

"Quidditch is mostly played by men," Aquila sighed. "What happened with Davies... I had no idea that was the tradition. It was embarrassing, honestly. Besides, I'm going to have a lot of guys in my life. It's just how the sport is... I still like you, Dudley. That doesn't change, you know. And I hope it won't be a problem... I'm not interested in them."

"Good."

She giggled, "Good." So he had a jealous side. A jealous side, a lazy side, an active side, and a caring side. And so many other facets. A human make-up. "Come on, we should hurry." So they walked as quickly as they could, without being qualified as jogging, and entered the Irish tent in a flourish.

"Right, pack up, quick, quick, we have to take down our tent, mates!" Mullet was calling to them.

Aquila smirked at Dudley and grabbed her trunk, throwing her things inside and taking Dudley's bag from him, before making sure her broom, stuffed inside, was alright. She didn't want to ruin it. She shrunk the trunk, much to Dudley's surprise, and handed it towards him. "Put that in your pocket. I would put them in mine, but yours are deeper." He nodded and she moved to the kitchen, helping Tara put any left over food into a sack and stuffing that in a crate that seemed to be made especially for that.

"We're going to apparate to Lynch's," Tara informed her. "Your boy know what to do?"

"Er, no," Aquila admitted.

"I'll take him, then. I'm a lot gentler than Quigley."

Aquila laughed, rolling her eyes. "Thanks. I appreciate it."

"Quigley will take you. And Fred's taking Alicia. I think that's everyone underage?" Aquila nodded and Tara wiped off her hands before directing everyone out of the tent. It took four full grown Quidditch players to wrestle a tent that was no larger than a bed on the outside to the ground. And then Quigley took her arm.

"Deep breath," she heard Tara instruct Dudley. "You may get a tad nauseas. Just don't vomit on me, lad." And then they were gone. Aquila nodded to Quigley, telling him she was ready, and they were gone as well.


End file.
